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t.  M 


DORCAS 

The  Daughter  of  Faustina 

BY  NATHAN  C.  KOUNS,     . 

Author  of  "Arius  the  Libyan." 


ILLUSTRATED. 


NEW   YORK: 
FORDS,  HOWARD   &  HULBERT. 


COPYRIGHT,  1884. 
BY  OUR  CONTINENT  PUBLISHING  Co. 


CONTENTS. 


PAGE 
PREFACE     7 

CHAPTER  I. 
DORCAS  THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA    ...        9 

CHAPTER  II. 
TOGA  VIRILIS 17 

CHAPTER  III. 

IN  WHICH  DORCAS  ASKETH  QUESTIONS  ...      28 

CHAPTER  IV. 
IN  WHICH  DORCAS  RUNNETH  AWAY        ...      46 

CHAPTER   V. 

IN  WHICH  DORCAS  HEARETH  THE  STORY  OF  FAUS 
TINA      65 

CHAPTER  VI. 
THE  SWADDLING  BANDS  OF  ANTI-CHRIST       .        .      75 

CHAPTER  VII. 

WHICH    SHOWETH    How    MARCELLUS     CONDUCTED 
HIMSELF 86 

CHAPTER  VIII. 

JUSTICE  TO  A  CHRISTIAN  AFTER   THE  HIGH  ROMAN 
FASHION 94 

CHAPTER  IX. 

A  FAIR  CONTRACT  FOR  A  PAGAN     ....    103 
(i) 


1732168 


ii  CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

CHAPTER  X. 

"  HE  THAT  SEEKETH  FINDETH  "  119 

CHAPTER  XL 
IN  WHICH  PHCEBE  REDEEMETH  HER  PROMISE        .     132 

CHAPTER  XII. 

IN  WHICH  THE  GOSPEL   is   STATED — AS  IT  WAS  IN 
A.D.  312       .        .        .        .        .        .        .        .     149 

CHAPTER  XIII. 
BIRDS,  BEASTS  AND  ORACLES,  THAT  TESTIFY         .     163 

CHAPTER  XIV. 
IN  WHICH  MARCELLUS  DISCOVERETH  A  BARBARIAN     170 

CHAPTER  XV. 

IN    WHICH   THERE   IS    SOME   TALK   OF    MARRIAGE        .       185 

CHAPTER  XVI. 

IN   WHICH    EUSEBIUS   OFFERETH  THE   SWADDLING- 
BANDS  UNTO  THE  CHURCH          ....     197 

CHAPTER  XVII. 
IN  WHICH  THE  BARBARIAN  is  CIVILIZED         .        .    209 

CHAPTER  XVIII. 
IN   WHICH    EUSEBIUS    SHOWETH    THE    SWADDLING 

BANDS  OF  CONSTANTINE 218 

CHAPTER  XIX. 

IN    WHICH    THERE    IS    A    DEATH    AND    ALSO  A  MAR 
RIAGE     233 

CHAPTER  XX. 

FINIS   .  240 


ILLUSTRATIONS. 


PAGE 

1.  "HERE  LIES  FAUSTINA" 7 

2.  AMID    THE   FOLIAGE   GLEAMED   STATUES          .  10 

3.  A  TALL  AND  SWARTHY  MAN  APPROACHED       .  12 
3.  VARUS  RAISED  His  HEAD           ....  13 

5.  THE  CUP  BEARER        ......  17 

6.  DORCAS  AlDS  IN  THE  SPINNING  OF  FLAX.         .  19 

7.  8.  THE  BIRTHDAY  FEAST    .        .        .        .        24,  25 
9.  DORCAS  GAZED  INTO  THE  ILLUMINATED  ROOM.  26 

10.  "COME  HITHER,  GIRL,"  SAID  MARCELLUS       .  34 

11.  THE  VICE-PREFECT  ADMIRED   THE   EASE   AND 

ELEGANCE  WITH  WHICH  SHE  WROTE    .        .  45 

12.  THE   VICE-PREFECT    WAS    EXPATIATING   UPON 

THE  GLORY  AND  GREATMESS    OF   ROME        .  52 

13.  THY  MOTHER  DID  Kiss  THEE  AND  MAKE   THE 

SIGN  OF   THE   CROSS 71 

14.  "  FAREWELL,  MARCELLUS.    THIS  CANNOT  BE  "  87 

15.  DORCAS  TURNED  OFF  INTO  A  TANGLED   MAZE.  105 

16.  SHE    PLACED    HER    LAMP    UPON    THE   STONY 

FLOOR,  AND  SANK  DOWN  UPON  HER  KNEES    .  120 

17.  AND    so    SHE  WENT    FORWARD,  CHANTING    A 

PSALM  OF    VICTORY        .....  134 

18.  THE    GIRL    STRETCHED    HERSELF    OUT    UPON 

THE  PRISON  COUCH 150 

(iii) 


iv  LIST  OF  ILLUSTRATIONS. 

PACK 

19.  AND  so  THEY  DEPARTED  FROM  THAT  CRUEL, 

PLACE '  .   .    .162 

20.  THE  YOUNG  MAN  KEPT  His  EYES  ON  HER     .     175 

21.  "  BROTHER,  IP  IT  BE  THE  WILL  OP  GOD,  ARISE 

AND  LIVE  !"     .        .        .        .   •     .        .        .186 

22.  "WILL  THOU  NOT  Kiss  ME,  DORCAS?"     .        .     196 

23.  THE   TWAIN   TROD   THROUGH    THE  LONG  GAL 

LERY  TOGETHER 203 

24.  HE  WENT  FORWARD  AND  EMPTIED  HIS  PURSE 

INTO  THE  TREASURY 211 

25.  WE  WILL  DIE  FOR  CHRIST,  BUT  WILL  NOT  BE 

TRAY  HIM" 220 

26.  "So  MAY  ALL  TRAITORS  AND  ALL  CHRISTIANS 

DIE!" 227 

27.  AND  THEY  BOTH  ANSWERED,   "AMEN"    .        .     235 
£8.  THE    CONGREGATION    PASSED     IN    SLOW    AND 

SOLEMN  PROCESSION 242 

29.  AT  LAST  THE  VAST  EXPANSE  OF   WATER   LAY 

OUTSPREAD  BEFORE  THEM      ....     248 

30.  "PER  ASPERA  AD  ASTRA"         ....     252 

31.  TAILPIECE  ,    255 


*  * 
* 


DORCAS, 

THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA, 


PREFACE. 

IN  the  Catacombs  of  Eome  is  an  ancient  tomb  wherein 
repose  the  mortal  remains  of  some  Christian  martyr. 
A  slab  of  white  marble  closes  the  little  crypt  cut  out  of 
the  rock  to  be  her  sarcophagus,  and  upon  this  slab  a 
careful,  but  unskilled  hand  hath  cut  an  inscription  that 
readeth  after  the  fashion  shown  at  the  beginning  hereof; 
the  English  of  which  is,  "Here  lies  Faustina.  In 
peace."  The  name  is  Latin,  the  inscription  is  in  the 
Greek  tongue,  the  word  Shalom  or  "Peace"  is  in  He 
brew.  The  character  in  the  lower  middle  portion  of 
the  slab  indicates  that  she  died  a  martyr  to  her  faith, 


8  PREFACE. 

and  the  urn  at  the  left  is  a  symbol  of  Christian  burial. 
Who  was  she  ?     How  died  she  ?    When  ? 

Musing  alone  beside  this  last  resting-place  of  one  who 
died  for  Jesus  centuries  ago,  my  lamp  flickered  and  ex 
pired  ;  and  then  in  the  subterranean  darkness  of  the 
catacombs  the  dead  forms  around  me  seemed  to  live 
again,  re-peopling  the  past  in  which  they  lived,  and 
loved,  and  suffered,  and  what  I  beheld,  as  in  a  vision,  I 
seek  now  to  reproduce  in  this  story  of  ANTI-CHRIST. 
Those  of  whom  I  learned  it  knew  whereof  they  spoke, 
and  the  reader  may  rely  upon  the  verity  of  all  things 
that  are  set  forth  as  facts. 


CHAPTEE  I. 

DORCAS,   THE   DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA. 

IN  the  year  310,  a  villa  stood  upon  the  Appian  Way 
in  the  suburbs  of  the  City  of  Rome,  which  had  been 
builded  in  the  usual  fashion  of  the  better  class  of  Roman 
houses  of  that  period,  and  was  owned  and  occupied  by 
the  Vice-Prefect  Varus,  whose  command  constituted  a 
portion  of  the  city  guards,  and  was  usually  stationed 
near  the  Campus  Martins.  This  man,  a  relative  of  that 
Yarus  who  had  been  terribly  defeated  by  the  German 
barbarians  in  the  forest  of  Teutoberg,  in  the  days  when 
Tiberius  was  emperor,  and  had  fallen  upon  his  own 
sword  and  died  because  of  his  mortification  over  that 
defeat,  was  a  perfect  type  of  the  Roman  officer,  devoted 
to  military  life,  thoroughly  trained  to  his  inhuman  pro 
fession,  and  incapable  of  judging  of  the  right  or  wrong 
of  anything  unless  some  military  order  or  custom  had 
first  decided  it.  In  other  words,  he  knew  no  sense  of 
duty  except  to  conform  to  military  usages,  and  obey 
such  orders  as  he  might  receive  from  his  superiors  ;  yet 
he  was  not  narrow-minded,  weak  nor  ignorant.  He 
was,  indeed,  a  man  of  large  intelligence  and  of  consider 
able  literary  attainments.  He  had  served  for  many 
years  in  Italy  and  in  foreign  lands,  and  being  beyond 
the  meridian  of  life  and  somewhat  disabled  by  honor- 


10 


DORCAS, 


able  wounds,  he  had  obtained  a  lucrative  position  in 
the  legions  stationed  about  the  city,  the  duties  of  which 
were  so  light  that  he  passed  the  greater  portion  of  his 
time  at  the  villa  with  his  wife  Calpha,  his  son  Marcellus 

and  the  throng  of  do 
mestic  slaves  usually 
found  about  an  opulent 
Roman's  house. 

The  house  of  Varus 
stood  back  a  short  dis 
tance  from  the  splendid 
highway,  and  was  sur 
rounded  by  extensive 
grounds  laid  off  in  cir 
cles,  rectangles  and  ir 
regular  forms,  bordered 

with  shrubs  and  flowers  and  cultivated  in  vineyards, 
orchards  and  gardens.  Here  and  there  amid  the  fo 
liage  of  the  trees  gleamed  numerous  marble  statues, 
the  lovely  Venus,  the  reeling  Bacchus,  the  sovereign 
Jupiter,  Silence,  with  marble  finger  on  his  marble 
lips,  and  numerous  other  deities. 

The  son  of  Varus  was  the  model  of  a  Roman  youth, 
tall,  agile,  athletic  and  almost  singularly  handsome.  In 
a  short  time  he  would  be  of  age,  and  through  his 
father's  influence  he  had  already  obtained  an  appoint 
ment  as  centurion  to  take  effect  upon  the  day  that  he 
should  "burn  his  beard"  and  assume  the  virile  toga. 

The  Vice-Prefect  sat  in  the  shade  one  day  in  front  of 
his  open  portico,  tracing  words  and  figures  with  the 


THE  DAUGHTER   OF  FAUSTINA.  11 

point  of  his  sword  in  the  sand  and  gravel  of  the  broad 
walk  leading  from  the  house  to  the  highway,  when  up 
from  the  marble  stile  upon  the  road  a  tall  and  swarthy 
man  approached,  leading  a  young  girl  by  the  hand.  So 
preoccupied  was  Varus  that  he  did  not  notice  their 
coming  until  the  tall  man's  shadow  fell  upon  the  figure 
he  was  making  in  the  sand,  and  upon  raising  his  head 
to  see  whom  his  visitors  might  be,  received  a  respectful 
salute,  and  the  man  said  in  the  Greek  language,  then 
much  used  at  Rome  : 
"Art  thou  the  Vice-Prefect  Varus ?" 
"Yea,"  answered  Varus  ;  "  who  art  thou?" 
"I  am  Epaphras,  an  Israelite,  and  the  maiden  is 
Dorcas,  the  daughter  of  Faustina,  whom  I  have  brought 
to  thee  because  I  heard  in  the  city  that  thou  desirest  to 
employ  a  damsel  who  can  read  and  speak  the  Greek  and 
the  Latin,  and  is  not  wholly  uninstructed  in  the  Hebrew 
tongue." 

"  Yea,  yea  I"  cried  the  Vice-Prefect,  his  bronzed  face 
lighting  up  with  pleasure,  "I  greatly  desire  to  hire  such 
a  girl,  and  will  pay  liberally  for  her  services.  "We  have 
four  millions  of  people  in  holy  Rome,  and  the  greater 
part  of  them  are  slaves,  yet  is  it  difficult  to  obtain  a 
slave  fit  for  the  duties  I  wish  done,  the  few  of  them  who 
are  sufficiently  educated  being  kept  by  the  senators  and 
patricians  in  the  city.  But  this  girl  is  almost  a  child  ; 
can  she  write  as  well  as  speak  the  Greek  and  the 
Latin  ?" 

"Yea,  verily,"  Epaphras  said;  "for  the  maiden  is 
fifteen  years  of  age,  and  hardly  knoweth  which  may  be 


A   TALL    AND    SWARTHY    MAN    APPROACHED,    LEADING    A 
YOUNG   GIRL    BY   THE   HAND.— p.  11. 

12 


VABUS  RAISED   HIS   HEAD   TO   SEE   WHO   HIS   VISITOR 
MIGHT   BE. — p.  11. 

13 


14  DORCAS, 

her  native  tongue,  as  she  hath  been  accustomed  to  use 
them  both  alike  from  her  very  childhood." 

"  Then  I  shall  mark  this  as  a  lucky  day,"  said  Varus, 
"  for  my  sight  faileth  me  so  that  I  read  with  difficulty, 
and  it  is  a  dreary  thing  to  stay  all  day  at  home  listening 
to  the  silly  chattering  of  Calpha  and  her  women.  Name 
the  price,  Jew,  and  believe  thou  that  the  girl  hath 
found  a  friend  indeed  if  she  can  read  and  write  as  thou 
sayest." 

"The  price  of  her  services,"  said  Epaphras,  "is  a 
secondary  consideration,  and  may  safely  be  left  to  thy 
liberality ;  but  thou  art  an  honorable  Roman,  and  be 
fore  I  commit  the  maiden  to  thy  care,  there  are  certain 
conditions  for  the  performance  of  which  thou  must 
pledge  me  thy  word." 

Then  the  brows  of  Varus  contracted  impatiently,  and 
he  sharply  answered  : 

"  Surely  no  Roman  hath  ever  bargained  with  a  Jew 
but  that  he  is  bound  by  some  unreasonable  conditions. 
But  what  are  thine  ?" 

"Naught  unreasonable,  I  hope,"  replied  Epaphras. 
"The  maiden  is  not  a  slave,  but  is  free-born,  and  the 
conditions  are  only  that  she  shall  not  be  questioned  nor 
argued  with  concerning  our  religion ;  only  that  she  shall 
have  the  Seventh  day  for  her  own,  without  let  or  hin 
drance  ;  only  that  she  shall  not  be  required  to  obey  any 
orders  save  thine  own  and  those  of  thy  wife." 

"These  are  but  just  and  reasonable  conditions,"  said 
Varus,  "  and  I  give  thee  my  sacred  word  that  they  shall 
be  faithfully  observed.  Of  course,  no  sensible  Roman 


THE  DAUGHTER   OF  FAUSTINA.  15 

ever  expects  a  Jew  to  abandon  the  severe  and  inhuman 
tenets  of  his  religion,  or  to  permit  his  children  to  do  so, 
in  order  to  learn  the  more  reasonable  and  delightful 
worship  of  the  gods  of  Rome ;  but  I  chiefly  desire  the 
girl  to  read  and  write  for  me,  and  if  she  should  some 
times  bring  a  small  amphora  from  the  cellar  and  serve 
me  with  a  little  wine,  that  is  the  only  other  duty  I  shall 
require  of  her." 

"  Then  I  do  place  her  under  thy  protection,  and  will 
take  my  leave." 

"  But  where  and  when  wilt  thou  collect  her  wages  ?" 
said  Varus. 

"  Give  unto  her  weekly  whatever  thou  wilt,"  said 
Epaphras.  "  A  good  home  with  reputable  people,  and 
kind  treatment,  is  more  to  the  maiden  and  to  me  than 
wages,  although  we  are  but  poor." 

"And  wilt  thou  trust  a  child  with  money?"  asked 
Varus. 

"Yea,"  replied  Epaphras,  his  dark  face  flushing 
vividly,  "  I  would  trust  this  child  with  uncounted  money 
— withmy  life,  if  need  be.  If  she  do  ever  steal  from 
thee,  if  she  do  ever  lie  to  thee,  if  thou  findest  her  in 
anything  lacking  truth,  integrity  and  modesty,  take  out 
thine  anger  upon  me  with  sword  or  stave,  or  what  thou 
wilt!" 

"What  is  thy  name,  child  ?"  asked  Varus. 

"Dorcas,  the  daughter  of  Faustina,"  answered  she. 

"  If  thou  dost  merit  the  confidence  and  praise  this 
Israelite  bestows  upon  thee,  Dorcas,  count  it  a  happy 
day  which  brought  thee  to  my  house." 


16  DORCAS, 

Then,  turningto  Epaphras.  he  said,  "Farewell." 

And  Epaphras,  with  a  low  bow,  said,  "Farewell, 
Vice-Prefect !"  But  ere  he  turned  away  Epaphras 
clasped  the  hand  of  Dorcas,  kissed  her  fair  white  brow, 
and,  with  a  glance  of  unutterable  tenderness,  whis 
pered,  "The  Lord  preserve  thee,  child  !"  to  which,  in  a 
like  subdued  tone,  she  answered,  "And  thee,  also, 
father." 

Then  saying,  "Follow  me,"  Varus  led  Dorcas  into 
the  atrium,  or  central  hall,  into  which  the  numerous 
rooms  of  the  house  all  opened,  and  thence  into  a  small 
room  on  the  left,  which  he  called  his  library  ;  and  seat 
ing  himself  comfortably,  he  placed  in  her  hands  some 
leaves  of  the  Anabasis,  saying,  "Be  thou  seated,  and 
read  this  for  me." 

And  thus  was  Dorcas  installed  in  her  humble  but 
pleasant  position  in  the  villa  of  the  Vice-Prefect  Varus. 


CHAPTEK  II. 


TOGA   VIRILIS. 

THE  months  passed  swiftly  and  quietly,  and  the  day 
came  upon  which  Marcellus  was  to  celebrate  his  coming 
of  age,  after  the  manner  of  the  golden  youth  of  Rome  ; 
and,  although  he  had  been  sending  messages  to  his 
mother  and  orders  to  the 
slaves  for  days  before,  on  the 
morning  of  the  eventful  day 
he  came  on  horseback  to  the 
villa  to  see  for  himself  that 
the  preparations  for  the  revel 
were  properly  made,  and  to 
report  that  the  soothsayers 
had  announced  that  all  omens 
and  auguries  were  auspicious 
for  celebrating  an  event  so 
important  in  the  life  of  a 
young  gentleman  of  the 
Imperial  City.  The  young 

man  leaped  from  his  horse  at  the  stile  in  front  of 
the  house,  and  left  the  beast  as  if  he  knew  there  must 
be  some  one  there  to  take  charge  of  him,  some  one  of 
the  slaves  to  whom  the  benevolent  gods  of  Rome  had 

given  life  only  that  they  might  minister  to  the  conve- 

If 


18  DORCAS, 

niences,  passions  and  pleasures  of  those  upper  classes 
for  whom  the  world  was  made.  The  young  man  came 
swinging  up  the  broad  gravel  walk  with  that  swift,  mar 
tial  tread  which  the  thorough  military  training  that  his 
father  had  given  to  him  seemed  to  have  made  his 
natural  gait ;  for,  careless  about  many  things,  the  Vice- 
Prefect  had  insisted,  with  steady  and  inflexible  determi 
nation,  that  the  boy  must  be  a  thorough  soldier,  and 
had  never  permitted  any  excuses  to  avail  for  evading 
daily  military  exercises  ;  and,  indeed,  the  youth's  mar 
tial  spirit  had  seconded  his  father's  settled  purpose  so 
well  that  the  boy  was  as  proficient  in  the  tactics,  and 
even  in  the  military  laws  which  prevailed  in  the 
armies  of  the  empire,  as  any  veteran.  He  came  rush 
ing  into  the  house  with  a  boisterous-and  half-boyish 
good  humor  and  impatience,  nodded  courteously  to  his 
mother,  Calpha,  kissed  some  of  the  slave-girls  in  her 
presence,  and  hugged  and  touseled  others  until  they 
ran  off  screaming  and  laughing,  to  avoid  the  embraces 
of  the  romping  youth,  and  then  began  to  make  minute 
and  rapid  inquiries  after  almost  every  item  of  the  pre 
parations  in  progress  for  the  coming  feast,  and  espe 
cially  as  to  the  quality  of  snow  which  had  been  brought 
from  Mount  Soracte,  and  as  to  the  particular  anaphoras 
of  wine  that  had  been  packed  away  in  it. 

During  the  few  months  she  had  been  at  the  villa 
Dorcas  had  so  greatly  pleased  the  Vice-Prefect  by  her 
reading  and  writing,  and  by  her  pleasant  but  always 
cautious  conversation,  that  he  felt  the  giri  to  be  indis 
pensable  to  his  comfort,  and  never  permitted  anything 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA. 


19 


to  interfere  with  the  services  she  was  accustomed  to  ren 
der  him.  But  whenever  any  duty  of  his  official  posi 
tion  required  his  presence  in  the  city  she  was  left  very 
much  to  her  own  devices  and  inclinations  ;  and  gener 
ally  she  went  into  the  atrium  and  volunteered  to  aid 


Calpha  and  the  slaves  in  the  preparation  or  spinning  of 
wool  and  flax,  in  preserving  various  fruits,  and  in  other 
domestic  operations ;  and  she  was  always  so  quiet, 
cheerful  and  neat  that  her  aid  was  exceedingly  accept 
able.  But  both  Calpha  and  the  slaves  observed  that 
whenever  their  talk  drifted  into  the  licentiousness  and 
immodesty  which  were  common  in  the  gossipings  of  all 
Roman  women,  high  and  low,  the  girl  at  once  became 
silent,  her  sweet  young  face  grew  very  grave,  and  if 
it  were  at  all  convenient  to  leave  the  atrium  she 
would  do  so  immediately ;  but  her  uniform  kindness 


20  DORCAS, 

to  all  of  them  prevented  them  from  resenting  her 
manifest  loathing  of  subjects  which  always  formed 
the  staple  of  their  talk,  and  the  tenderness  and  rever 
ence  which  were  constantly  manifest  in  her  deportment 
toward  Calpha,  the  wife  of  Varus,  the  mother  of  Mar- 
cellus,  the  mistress  of  these  slaves,  was  a  thing  so  new 
and  pleasant  to  that  most  reputable  matron  that  she 
wondered  how  and  where  the  girl  had  acquired  man 
ners  that  seemed  naturally  to  exhibit  a  degree  of  respect 
for  herself  which  no  Roman  mother  ever  expected  or 
received  from  her  own  daughters — a  reverence  that  was 
not  based  upon  fear,  like  that  of  her  domestics,  but  that 
seemed  to  be  spontaneous,  loving  and  sincere. 

Indeed,  while  the  Vice-Prefect  Yarns  was  a  better 
husband,  a  better  father,  a  better  master,  and,  in  almost 
every  respect,  a  better  man  than  any  other  Roman  of 
his  rank  and  wealth,  Dorcas  had  dwelt  at  the  villa  but  a 
short  time  before  she  perceived,  young  as  she  was,  that 
under  the  social  and  political  system  of  the  empire  the 
wives  of  even  the  most  reputable  Romans  were  only  a 
better  sort  of  slaves,  in  spite  of  the  vain  shadow  of  re 
spect  which  the  law  threw  over  them.  Calpha,  in  every 
respect  a  very  worthy  and  sensible  woman,  stood  some 
what  higher  in  the  estimation  of  her  husband  and  son 
(themselves  most  excellent  Romans)  than  would  a  mare 
that  had  been  dam  to  a  very  fine  colt,  or  a  slave  that 
had  chanced  to  render  some  extraordinary  service.  The 
single  advantage  that  the  wife  had  over  the  other  do 
mestics  consisted  in  the  fact  that  her  legal  relation  to 
the  master  of  the  house  made  her  offspring  legitimate, 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  21 

and  also  gave  her  power  to  control  her  husband's  other 
slaves. 

!N~ot  knowing  that  the  young  man  had  come  home, 
Dorcas  went  into  the  atrium,  as  usual,  to  offer  such 
aid  as  she  might  be  able  to  render  in  the  doing  of  their 
domestic  tasks ;  and  Marcellus  no  sooner  saw  her 
than,  gazing  upon  her  with  undisguised  admiration, 
he  cried  aloud:  "Dioscuri!  but  the  Vice-Prefect  hath 
shown  marvelous  good  taste  in  the  purchase  of  such  a 
new  slave  as  that !  And  do  thou  remember,  girl,  that 
to  prevent  any  growth  of  jealousy  upon  the  part  of 
Calpha  against  my  most  reputable  father,  from  this  day 
I  claim  thee  for  mine  own."  Then,  darting  forward,  he 
seized  her  hand  in  one  of  his  own,  and  catching  her 
about  the  waist  with  the  other,  he  kissed  her  before 
she  could  break  from  his  grasp,  while  he  rattled  away 
in  praise  of  her  beauty:  "By  Aphrodite!  thou  art 
beautiful !  Thy  brow  is  fairer  than  a  marble  god's  ! 
Thine  eyes  are  bluer  and  deeper  than  the  summer  sky  ! 
Thy  lips  are  redder  than  the  scarlet  cherries  !  Thy 
cheeks  are  pinker  than  the  sea  shell's  delicatest  bloom  !" 
But  before  the  delighted  and  laughing  youth  had 
finished  his  panegyric  Dorcas  had  glided  out  of  his 
embrace,  and  sprang  away  behind  his  mother's  chair, 
and  stood  there  gazing,  flushed  and  indignant,  upon  the 
handsome  youth,  but  silent  still.  "  Come  thou  hither," 
said  Marcellus,  "for  thou  shaltbe  fast  friend  with  me. 
By  foam-born  Yenus.  no  other  Roman  hath  so  beautiful 
a  slave,  and  thou  shalt  be  my  pet  and  favorite  henceforth ! 
Come  hither,  girl !" 


22  DORCAS, 

But  Dorcas  raised  her  queenly  little  head,  and,  gazing 
with  quiet  self-possession  into  the  young  man's  eager 
face,  in  low  and  modulated  tones  as  sweet  as  flute- 
notes,  answered  thus  :  "  Thou  art  greatly  mistaken, 
centurion,  for  I  am  not  a  slave,  but  born  as  free  as  thou 
art ;  and  I  hope  that  thy  conduct,  which  seemeth  to 
have  grown  out  of  this  mistake,  will  never  be  repeated. " 

"  "What,  then,  art  thou  doing  here  ?"  asked  Marcellus. 

"  I  serve  the  Vice-Prefect  Varus  upon  a  contract,  one 
condition  of  which  is  that  I  am  subject  to  the  orders  of 
no  one  in  his  house  except  his  own  and  those  of  thy 
mother,  Calpha  1" 

"  Then  thou,  Calpha,  command  this  beautiful  hireling 
that  she  come  hither  and  make  friends  with  me." 

"Nay!"  said  Calpha.  "I  will  in  no  wise  interfere 
with  thy  father's  wishes,  by  which  the  maiden  is  to  be 
free  of  all  control ;  for  he  is  marvelously  attached  to 
Dorcas.  And  besides,"  she  continued  with  a  sly  smile, 
"  to  me  it  seemeth  that  oiie  of  the  handsomest  youths 
in  holy  Kome  should  scorn  to  implore  his  mother's 
help  to  win  the  damsel's  favor !" 

"I  will  not  do  so,"  said  Marcellus;  "but  by  the 
gods  of  Rome,  I  will  have  her,  and  win  her-  for 
myself,  too !  For  there  is  no  girl  of  her  class  in  the 
imperial  city  that  would,  hesitate  to  put  all  her  wages 
into  an  offering  to  Venus  to  gain  so  much  of  my  praise 
and  admiration  as  thou  dost  scornfully  reject."  But 
Dorcas  had  quietly  left  the  room,  nor  did  Marcellus  see 
her  again  that  day,  although  he  was  here,  there  and 
everywhere,  bustling  around  and  meddling  with  the 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  23 

arrangements  for  the  coming  feast,  now  and  then 
exhibiting  toward  the  young  female  slaves  a  tactual 
familiarity  and  kindness  which  showed  that  his  boast 
of  being  a  favorite  was  no  extravagance,  and  which, 
alas  !  also  showed  that  the  sacred  delicacy  which  belong 
to  womanhood  was  unknown  and  unrecognized  even  in  a 
household  so  very  respectable  as  that  of  the  Vice-Prefect. 

About  nightfall  the  young  iriends  of  the  centurion 
began  to  arrive,  and  many  of  them  were  accompanied 
by  favorite  slaves  or  other  feminine  friends.  Soon  the 
customary  rites  began  with  the  burning  of  the  beard  of 
Marcellus,  with  libations  to  the  Lares  and  Penates,  the 
household  gods  of  Home,  with  other  libations  and  offer 
ings  to  Venus  and  to  Mars,  and  with  strange  ceremonies 
which  the  later  Komans  had  learned  of  Egypt  in  honor 
of  Anubis,  Astarte,  and  Cybele  ! 

Then  the  banquet  began,  in  which  the  young  men  re 
clined  around  the  table  spread  in  the  great  hall,  tasted 
delicacies  which  were  of  themselves  enough  to  prove  that 
almost  every  clime  and  people  under  heaven  paid  tribute 
to  the  luxury  as  well  as  the  power  of  Rome.  Each  sepa 
rate  course  of  the  feast  was  followed  or  accompanied  by 
liberal  draughts  of  different  wines,  and  the  girls  who 
reclined  with  the  young  gentlemen  at  table  (a  privilege 
from  which  their  own  sisters,  and  all  matrons,  were 
jealously  excluded  by  Roman  customs)  were  not  behind 
their  masculine  associates  in  eating  or  in  drinking,  or 
in  wit  and  ribaldry.  Hour  after  hour  the  feast  con 
tinued,  the  wine  circulated  more  and  more  freely,  the 
jest  became  broader,  the  conversation  louder  and  more 


24 


DORCAS, 


THE   BIRTHDAY    FEAST. 


unrestrained,  and  the  song  and  glance  more  reckless, 
until  far  into  the  night,  both  sexes  seemed  to  have 
reached  the  last  stages  of  inebriety  and  indecency ;  and 
some  of  them  were  still  lying  around  the  tables  in  the 
hall,  some  had  wandered  out  into  the  surrounding 
grounds,  and,  here  and  there  upon  the  rustic  benches 
or  the  pleasanter  couch  of  grass,  slept  off  the  wild 
debauch.  It  was  a  drunken  revelry  that  Avould  have 
disgraced  a  Roman  in  the  earlier  and  better  days  of 
Rome,  but  which  at  that  era  was  the  universal  custom 
among  the  wealthy  classes,  not  supposed  to  merit  cen 
sure  at  all,  and  which  was  regarded  as  the  usual  and 
proper  thing  by  the  Vice-Prefect  and  his  wife,  whose 
only  concern  was  to  see  that  the  wants  of  the  guests 
were  properly  supplied,  and  that  any  approach  to 
quarreling  was  promptly  checked  before  it  could 
assume  the  features  of  a  brawl.  It  was  a  fair  in- 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  25 


THE    BIRTHDAY   FEAST. 

dex  to  the  state  of  private  morals  throughout  the 
empire,  and  especially  at  Rome.  These  young  men 
were  not  lost  to  the  sense  of  .shame  that  in  a  better  age 
would  necessarily  have  sprung  from  such  luxurious  and 
unmanly  excesses  because  they  were  bad  men  or  worse 
than  other  Romans  of  their  class,  but  they  were  entirely 
devoid  of  any  sense  of  shame  because  they  did  not 
know  that  there  was  anything  in  these  customs  and 
conduct  of  which  to  be  ashamed.  They  were  only  acting 
in  accordance  with  the  teachings  of  their  age  and 
country,  and  saw  nothing  disreputable  to  their  own 
characters,  or  unacceptable  to  the  gods,  in  any  feature 
of  their  revelry. 

Dorcas  had  declined  the  request  of  Calpha  that  she 
would  remain  in  the  atrium,  but,  seated  at  one  of  the 
small  windows  characteristic  of  Roman  architecture  at 
the  far  end  of  one  of  the  little  rooms  which  opened  into 


26 


DORCAS, 


DORCAS  GAZED  WITH  VIVID  INTEREST   INTO   THE 
ILLUMINATED    ROOM. 

the  hall,  herself  in  darkness  almost,  she  gazed  with 
vivid  interest  into  the  illuminated  room,  watching  tho 
rites  and  subsequent  revelry,  until,  with  burning  cheek 
and  eye,  she  slipped  out  of  the  window  quietly  and 
sought  the  solitude  of  her  own  chamber,  adjoining  thai 
which  Varus  called  his  library,  and  repeated,  half  in 
reverie,  in  the  splendid  language  of  the  Greeks,  words 
that  seemed  to  be  practically  illustrated  by  the  scenes 
she  had  just  witnessed : 

"Now  the  works  of  the  flesh  are  manifest,  idolatry, 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  27 

drunkenness,  revelings  and  such  like ;  of  which  I  tell 
you  before,  as  I  have  also  told  you  in  times  past,  that 
they  which  do  such  things  shall  not  inherit  the  king 
dom  of  God.  But  the  fruit  of  the  Spirit  is  love,  joy, 
peace,  long-suffering,  gentleness,  goodness,  faith,  meek 
ness,  temperance  ;  against  such  there  is  no  law.  And 
they  that  are  Christ's  have  crucified  the  flesh  with  the 
affections  and  lusts !" 

But  continued  she,  musingly,  "  The  centurion  is  so 
young,  so  handsome,  so  full  of  life,  and  joy,  and  kind 
ness,  and  he  knows  no  better  than  he  docs  I" 


CHAPTEK  III. 

IN   WHICH   DORCAS  ASKETH   QUESTIONS. 

THE  next  morning,  at  a  late  hour,  the  revelers  whom 
choice  had  detained  at  the  villa,  and  those  whom 
vinous  excesses  had  rendered  incapable  of  making  their 
way  back  to  the  city,  after  certain  matutinal  libations 
to  the  gods  and  a  generous  breakfast,  took  their  depar 
ture.  And  Marcellus,  also,  went  to  take  formal  com 
mand  of  his  century  which  his  father  had  obtained  for 
him,  and  had  selected  beforehand.  For  some  days  he 
did  not  return  to  the  villa,  but  Dorcas  learned,  from 
daily  consversations  in  the  family,  that  the  young  cen 
turion  was  pursuing  a  round  of  dissipations  among  his 
friends,  some  of  whom  were  already,  and  some  of  whom 
were  expecting  to  be,  admitted  into  the  military  service 
of  the  empire  about  the  same  period.  She  remai'ked 
with  astonishment  the  fact  that  while  Yarns  was  him 
self  the  bearer  of  nearly  all  the  information  the  family 
received  concerning  Marcellus,  and  was  informed  of  all 
the  incidents  of  the  feasts  and  debaucheries  in  which 
that  gallant  young  gentleman  participated,  neither  he 
nor  Calpha  ever  uttered  a  word  of  censure  or  of  anxiety, 
but  did  use  many  expressions  which  indicated  their 
opinion  to  be  that  the  dissipations  constantly  referred  to 

were  all  right  and  proper  enough  in  a  young  man,  en- 

28 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  29 

tirely  consonant  with  the  customs  and  usages  of  Roman 
social  life,  and  with  the  religious  ideas  of  paganism. 

The  Vice-Prefect  was  so  much  gratified  with  the 
manner  in  which  his  young  scribe  and  reader  performed 
the  tasks  required  of  her,  that  he  insensibly  began  to 
enlarge  the  sphere  of  her  duties,  so  that,  in  place  of  con 
fining  her  to  the  reading  of  such  classics  as  belonged  to 
him,  and  copying  passages  which  pleased  him  out  of 
those  borrowed  from  acquaintances  and  friends,  he 
began  gradually  to  employ  her  quick  intelligence  and 
deft  fingers  in  making  copies  of  such  reports  connected 
with  his  official  business  as  he  deemed  it  to  be  necessary 
to  make  in  duplicate.  One  day  Yarns  laid  before  her 
the  report  of  his  criminal  jurisdiction  for  the  preceding 
month,  setting  forth  that  he  had  ordered  the  execution 
or  other  punishment  of  certain  malefactors  who  had 
been  tried  and  condemned  by  the  magistrates  and  trans 
ferred  to  him  for  punishment.  In  transcribing  this  re 
port  she  came  upon  the  following  sentence  : 

"Besides  these  cases  of  ordinary  crime,  I  had  before  me 
seven  wretches  accused  of  the  crime  of  being  Christians. 
Two  of  them,  who  had  remained  silent  when  interrogated 
in  sight  of  the  implements  of  torture,  confessed  their 
guilt,  and  sacrificed  to  Jupiter,  and  were  thereupon  dis 
charged.  Three  of  them,  who  remained  obstinately 
silent,  I  had  flogged  soundly  and  banished  them  out  of  thy 
dominions.  Two  of  them,  who  insolently  boasted  of  their 
devotion  to  that  malignant,  superstition,  and  ridiculed  the 
gods  of  Rome,  I  ordered  to  be  immediately  beheaded." 

When  the  young  girl  read  this  statement  in  the  official 
report,  she  turned  pale  and  trembled  so  that  her  fingers 


30  DORCAS, 

refused  to  perform  their  office,  and  the  cessation  of  her 
work  caught  the  attention  of  the  Vice-Prefect,  who  was 
looking  on  admiring  the  ease  and  elegance  with  which 
she  wrote. 

"What  aileth  thee,  Dorcas?"  he  said  kindly.  "  Art 
thou  ill.  child  ?  If  so,  defer  thy  task  until  to-morrow, 
and  a  good  night's  rest  will  restore  thee." 

But  mastering  her  emotion  by  a  resolute  effort,  she 
replied  : 

"  Xay,  Vice-Prefect !  It  hath  passed  me  by  already, 
and  I  will  finish  the  work  now." 

After  having  done  so.  and  finding  that  the  Vice-Pre 
fect  seemed  to  be  more  inclined  to  conversation  than  to 
assigning  her  any  other  task,  she  said  : 
.  "  In  thy  report  I  find  that  thou  hast  inflicted  punish 
ment  upon  murderers,  thieves  and  house  breakers. 
Also  that  thou  hast  punished  others  who  were  not 
accused  of  such  crimes,  simply  saying  that  they  were 
charged  with  being  Christians.  Wilt  thou  tell  me  what 
crimes  these  persons  had  committed  ?" 

"Why,"  said  Varus,  "they  were  members  of  that 
odious  sect  which  follows  Jesus  Christ,  whom  the  Pro 
curator,  Pontius  Pilate,  crucified  at  Jerusalem,  in  the 
days  when  the  Emperor  Tiberius  ruled  the  world.  A 
most  pestilent  superstition,  which,  in  spite  of  the  efforts 
of  many  pious  emperors  to  suppress  it,  hath  spread 
throughout  the  empire.  But  the  most  holy  Emperor 
Maxentius  hath  seen  the  evil  of  any  indulgence  granted 
to  this  criminal  association,  and  hath  ordered  that  its 
members  be  punished  wherever  found,  according  to  the 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  31 

edicts  made  by  the  Emperor  Diocletian.  But  surely 
thou — a  Jewess,  must  have  heard  of  this  Jesus  !" 

"Yea,"  answered  Dorcas  ;  "but  thy  report  showeth 
that  these  whom  thou  didst  punish  were  called  Chris 
tians,  and  I  asked  thee  what  crimes  they  were  said  to 
have  committed  ?" 

"None,"  said  Varus,  "except  that  they  were  Chris 
tians  ;  that  is  the  very  worst  of  crimes." 

"  But  if  I  do  not  weary  thee,"  said  Dorcas,  "  tell  me 
whether  it  is  the  custom  of  the  Eomans  to  punish  all 
who  differ  with  them  in  religion  ?" 

"  Surely  not,"  answered  Yarus  ;  "  Home  protects  and 
welcomes  all  religions  under  heaven,  and  cloth  not  even 
punish  thine  own  stubborn  and  presumptuous  people, 
but  permitteth  the  Jews  to  live  in  the  city,  although 
they  refuse  to  sacrifice  unto  the  gods  of  Rome." 

"Why,  then,  is  it  esteemed  so  great  a  crime  to  profess 
the  Christian  faith  ?" 

"  Because,"  rejoined  Varus,  "  this  most  odious  super 
stition  hath  grown  into  a  secret  organization  governed 
by  extravagant  laws  contrary  to  the  customs  of  our 
ancestors  and  inconsistent  with  the  laws  of  the  empire." 

"  Wilt  thou  inform  me  in  what  things  they  differ  from 
the  Roman  laws — things  of  consequence  enough  to  incur 
the  displeasure  of  the  Emperor?" 

"  Certainly,  child,  if  thou  seekest  knowledge.  In  the 
first  place,  this  most  impious  sect  mock  and  deride  the 
gods  of  Rome  and  every  other  nation,  refusing  to  visit 
the  temples  or  to  sacrifice.  This  mere  atheism  of  the 
Christians  would  not  be  esteemed  a  crime  punishable 


32  DORCAS, 

by  law ;  but  this  pernicious  sect  hath  held  and  taught 
for  three  centuries  that  no  man  ought  to  bear  arms  even 
in  defense  of  his  country,  and  the  acceptance  of  this 
pusillanimous  dogma  would  destroy  the  legions  and  ex 
pose  Home  and  the  empire  to  be  plundered  by  the  Bar 
barians.  Of  course  the  law  does  not  and  ought  not  to 
permit  the  existence  of  a  sect  which  makes  it  a  matter 
of  religion  to  discourage  enlistments  and  promote  de 
sertion." 

"  I  can  understand,"  replied  Dorcas,  "how  it  may  be 
that  a  great  and  warlike  people,  as  the  Romans  have 
always  been,  should  seek  to  destroy  a  religion  which 
opposes  all  wars,  and  forbids  its  followers  to  bear  arms. 
Yet,  Vice-Prefect,  to  an  innocent  and  ignorant  girl  like 
me,  it  doth  seem  that  thine  own  experience  upon  this 
point  would  lead  thee  to  protect,  rather  than  to  punish, 
the  Christians." 

"How  can  that  be  possible?"  asked  Varus  laugh 
ing. 

"Thou  art  a  soldier,"  said  Dorcas,  "and,  I  have 
heard,  an  officer  of  approved  courage  and  experience, 
that  hath  borne  the  imperial  standard  at  the  head  of 
thy  cohorts  in  Europe,  Asia  and  Africa.  Dost  thou  not 
think,  after  all  the  wrong  and  bloodshed  and  suffering 
which  thou  must  have  seen,  that  it  would  be  a  blessing 
to  mankind,  and  especially  to  the  common  people  of  the 
world,  upon  whom  fall  all  the  burdens  and  ills  of  war, 
if  there  should  never  be  war  again  ?" 

"Yea,"  answered  Yarns,  "a  measureless  blessing, 
truly  !  But  that  cannot  be,  child.  There  must  be  wars ; 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  33 

and  the  nation  that  would  preserve  itself  or  govern 
others,  must  be  first  in  war." 

"Yet  if  thine  account  of  the  Christians  be  correct,  all 
wars  must  cease  if  all  men  were  to  become  Christians  : 
and  thou  sayest  this  would  be  a  universal  blessing  !" 

"  But  the  only  road  to  peace  lies  through  the  fields  of 
war:  only  conquest  leads  to  peace,"  said  the  Vice- 
Prefect. 

"  Hast  thou  ever  been  engaged  in  any  war  in  which 
the  people  on  either  side  began  the  struggle  ?  Or  is  it 
true,  Vice-Prefect,  that  all  the  wars  that  afflict  man 
kind  grow  out  of  the  ambitions  and  crimes  of  rulers, 
and  generally  about  things  concerning  which  the  com 
mon  people  know  very  little  and  care  less  ?" 

"That  is  true  to  a  great  extent ;  but  it  is  true  also 
that  soldiers  must  fight  for  their  standards,  and  the  law 
cannot  tolerate  the  doctrine  of  '  non-resistance'  which 
these  accursed  Christians  teach.'' 

"Wilt  thou  inform  me  what  else  there  may  be  in  tne 
teachings  of  this  hated  sect  that  is  contrary  to  the  laws 
and  customs  of  Kome,  beside  their  opposition  to  bearing 
arms  ?" 

"  One  other  thing  in  regard  to  which  they  despise  our 
laws  and  customs  and  the  practice  of  antiquity,  is  the 
fact  that  they  make  it  religion  to  abolish  slavery.  They 
teach  that  no  Christian  can  lawfully  own  a  slave,  and 
that  if  any  slave  becomes  a  Christian  he  should  be  set 
free  ;  so  that  just  as  this  abominable  sect  groweth,  the 
number  of  freedmen  steadily  increaseth.  This  is  another 
one  of  those  '  extravagant  laws  and  opinions'  which  the 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  35 

most  holy  Emperor  Galerius  denounces  in  his  Edict  of 
Toleration  issued  '  to  reclaim  the  deluded  Christians  into 
the  way  of  reason  and  of  nature. ' ' 

"  I  have  had  small  opportunities  to  gain  knowledge 
of  all  these  matters,"  said  Dorcas. 

"And  thou  art  the  only  maiden,  or  matron  either,  I 
have  known  that  desired  to  gain  knowledge  of  any  mat 
ters  of  importance.  The  Roman  women  are  satisfied 
with  the  shameful  ignorance  which  maketh  them  but 
dreary  companions  for  sensible  men." 

"May  I  then  learn  by  asking  thee  ?"  said  Dorcas 
blandly. 

"  Yea,  child,  I  admire  thee  both  because  thou  know- 
est  much  already,  and  because  thou  art  eager  to  learn 
more." 

"I  understand,"  she  said,  "that  Roman  law  and 
custom  fosters  slavery,  and  thou  hast  informed  me  that 
this  hated  Christian  sect  is,  and  has  always  been,  set 
tled  in  its  opposition  to  slavery  of  any  kind.  I  see 
clearly,  therefore,  why  the  Roman  slave-owners  seek  to 
destroy  a  people  who  hold  a  religion  that  condemns  the 
slave  code  in  every  line  and  section  of  it.  But,  Vice- 
Prefect,  doth  thy  experience  teach  thee  that  slavery  is 
a  good  thing  in  itself?" 

"  It  hath  always  existed,"  replied  Yarus.  "  It  is  in 
accordance  with  '  the  ancient  laws  and  public  discipline 
of  the  Romans,'  and  '  the  religion  and  ceremonies  insti 
tuted  by  our  fathers,'  and  is  'the  practice  of  antiquity  ' 
even  as  the  most  holy  Emperor  Galerius  saith  in  the 
edict  to  which  I  have  referred  ;  and  these  Christians  are 


36  DORCAS, 

impious  in  despising  it  and  teaching  that  it  is  religion 
to  abolish  it." 

"But  is  it  a  good  thing,  Vice-Prefect?  "Wouldst 
thou  prefer  to  be  a  slave  thyself ?  Is  it  good  for  any 
save  the  masters  who  are  rich  ?  Is  it,  in  the  long  run, 
good  even  for  them  ?" 

"  These  are  strange  and  perplexing  questions,  Dor 
cas,  and  I  cannot  rightly  answer  them  at  this  time. 
Let  it  satisfy  thee  to  know  that  slavery  is  the  universal 
custom  of  all  peoples  in  all  ages,  and  it  is  impious  and 
unholy  in  this  Christian  sect  to  oppose  it." 

"  Are  there  other  matters  besides  war  and  slavery  in 
regard  to  which  these  Christians  violate  the  laws  and 
customs  of  the  Romans  ?" 

"Yea,  many  others,"  answered  Varus,  "one  of  the 
hiost  important  of  which  is  that  they  teach  as  religion 
that  all  the  laws  and  customs  of  Rome  which  legalize 
the  superiority  of  one  man,  or  class,  above  another,  and 
which  legalize  the  right  to  acquire,  hold  or  transmit 
private  property  rights,  are  contrary  to  the  will  of 
Christ,  and  ought  to  be  abolished.  They  teach  commu 
nity  of  property,  and  claim  to  have  practiced  this  worst 
form  of  agrarianism  for  three  hundred  years — an  abomi 
nable  system  which  would  destroy  all  property  and  sub 
vert  the  empire  and  all  government  if  it  should  be  once 
adopted." 

"Thou  didst  inform  me,  Vice-Prefect,  that  this  sect, 
although  punished  and  outlawed  by  many  of  the  em 
perors,  tolerated  by  but  few,  and  protected  by  none,  had 
spread  throughout  the  empire.  Canst  thou  tell  me 


THE  DA  UGIITER  OF  FA  URTINA.  37 

whether  it  hath  prospered  in  property  as  well  as  in 
numbers  ?" 

"  Yea,"  answered  Yams  ;  "  they  hold  all  property  in 
common :  the  individual  can  own  nothing  except  his 
wearing  apparel  and  daily  supplies  for  himself  and 
family ;  yet  the  Church  (which  is  the  name  by  which 
they  designate  their  illegal  and  pernicious  communities, 
each  of  which  appears  to  be  a  distinct  and  independent 
democracy)  are  growing  more  and  more  wealthy  every 
where." 

"Doth  it  not  seem  to  thee,  Vice-Prefect,  that  if  the 
Christian  communities,  by  this  democratic  policy,  have 
so  prospered  even  in  the  face  of  the  proscriptions  written 
against  them  in  the  imperial  law,  that  the  same  system 
would  secure  the  like  prosperity  for  other  people  also  ? 
and  that  it  would  be  good  news  to  the  poor  if  it  were 
universally  adopted  ?" 

"Dorcas,  thou  art  the  strangest  girl  that  I  have  ever 
seen.  Thy  questions  open  up  continually  new  and  mar 
velous  views  of  things  of  which  110  Roman  woman  ever 
thinks  at  all,  and  thou  art  sometimes  hard  to  answer." 
But  at  this  moment  Marcellus  saluted  his  father  from 
the  open  door,  in  his  usual  musical,  rollicking  tone  : 

"May  I  come  in,  Vice-Prefect,  and  profit  by  this 
grand  discussion  upon  laws,  religion  and  statesman 
ship  ?" 

"Come,"  said  Varus ;  "and  if  thou  wilt  listen  to 
this  young  girl  thou  wilt  have  much  to  think  about. 
This  is  my  son,  the  centurion,  Marcellus,  and  this  is 
Dorcas,  mv  scribe  and  reader." 


38  DORCAS, 

"All  hail!"  said  Marcellus,  with  mock  gravity. 
"  Now  let  the  fair  Aspasia  resume  the  broken  lessons." 

"I  think,"  said  Dorcas,  rising,  "  that  there  would  be 
more  profit  if  I  go  to  aid  thy  mother  with  the  work." 

"  Thou  shalt  remain,  Dorcas,"  said  Varus  ;  and  then 
turning  to  Marcellus  he  continued  :  "  This  Dorcas  hath 
found,  in  transcribing  some  minutes  of  the  criminal  re 
port,  an  entry  of  the  punishment  of  certain  malevolent 
and  contumacious  Christians,  and  hath  inquired  why 
the  Roman  laws  afflict  them  ;  and  upon  being  informed 
that  it  is  because  they  teach  a  religion  in  opposition  to 
war,  slavery,  social  and  political  distinctions  between 
men  and  classes  of  men,  and  all  laws  of  private  prop 
erty,  she  hath  suggested,  even  by  her  inquiries,  whether 
war  is  not  an  evil  thing  and  a  curse  to  the  world,  and 
whether  slavery  is  not  an  evil  thing,  and  whether,  if  the 
Christians  prosper  by  communism,  even  under  the  male 
diction  of  the  laws,  that  system  might  not  really  be  best 
for  all  men.  What  thinkest  thou,  centurion,  of  all  these 
things?" 

"  I  say  that  war  is  a  glorious  thing  for  all  of  the 
better  classes  ;  that  slavery  is  necessary  for  their  con 
venience,  and  that  without  offices,  rank,  privileges  and 
private  property,  we  would  be  no  better  than  the  ple- 
bians ;  and  that,  as  to  the  common  herd,  it  doth  not 
matter  a  denarius  to  any  sensible  man  whether  war  or 
slavery  bless  or  curse  them.  That  is  the  hard,  common- 
sense,  practical  creed  of  the  respectable  classes  in  Rome, 
and  I  indorse  it  with  all  my  soul." 

And  Varus,  desirous  of  keeping  the  splendid  youth 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  39 

near  to  himself,  and  willing  to  call  out  more  of  the 
girl's  strange  fancies,  which  amused  and  interested  him, 
turned  to  her,  saying  : 

"  What  answer  has  thou,  Dorcas,  for  this  declamation 
of  the  centurion?" 

But  Dorcas  answered  :  "I  have  none,  nor  do  I  pre 
sume  to  dispute  such  matters  either  with  thee  or  with 
him,  although  by  thy  permission  I  did  ask  thee  certain 
questions." 

"If  thou  art  too  modest  to  advance  thine  own  opin 
ions,"  laughed  out  Varus,  "  ask  whatever  thou  desirest 
to  know." 

"Wilt  thou  inform  me  whether  there  are  yet  other 
laws  and  customs  of  the  Romans  to  which  this  Christian 
sect  maintains  its  obstinate  opposition  ?" 

"  No  others  that  now  occur  to  me,"  answered  Varus, 
"  except  such  as  thine  own  people  refuse  to  obey.  They 
deny  the  divinity  of  the  gods,  they  scorn  the  idols,  they 
refuse  to  adore  the  eikons,  and  refuse  to  sacrifice,  or 
even  to  visit  the  temples.  But  the  Jews  are  like  them 
in  all  these  respects." 

"Art  thou  a  Jewess,  Dorcas  ?"  inquired  Marcellus. 
The  young  woman  made  no  answer,  but  turned  with 
an  appealing  look  to  Varus,  who  thereupon  spoke  as 
follows  : 

"Centurion,  I  agreed  with  the  Israelite  Epaphras, 
who  brought  to  me  my  incomparable  secretary,  that  she 
should  not  be  questioned  concerning  her  religion,  and 
thou  must  respect  the  terms  of  mine  agreement,  and 
allow  thy  question  to  remain  unanswered." 


40  DORCAS, 

"But,"  said  Marcellus  apologetically,  "I  did  not  in 
tend  to  refer  to  her  religion,  but  to  nationality.  Surely, 
with  those  wonderful  blue  eyes  and  her  complexion 
fairer  than  a  lily,  our  Dorcas  can  hardly  be  a  Jewess  by 
birth  ?" 

"  I  think  not,"  said  Dorcas.  "  The  excellent  Epaph- 
ras,  who  hath  been  my  guardian  from  mine  infancy  (for 
my  parents  died  before  I  can  remember  them),  hath  told 
me  that  my  mother  was  the  daughter  of  a  chieftain  of 
the  Cimbri,  whose  wife  followed  him  to  Rome  when  he 
was  brought  hither  as  a  captive  from  the  regions  that 
border  on  the  far  Xorth  Sea." 

The  young  centurion  had  all  this  time  regarded  Dor 
cas  with  looks  of  undisguised  and  ardent  admiration, 
and  when  she  ceased  speaking  he  exclaimed:  "Dios 
curi  !  but  I  knew  no  Jewish  blood  could  flow  through 
the  blue  veins  that  show  so  beautifully  beneath  her 
snowy  skin  !  Only  the  frozen  Xorth  can  yield  these 
golden-haired  and  heaven-eyed  maidens,  fairer  than 
marbles  of  Peutelicus  !"  Then,  seeing  that  the  girl  was 
painfully  embarrassed  by  his  gaze  and  speech — an  evi 
dence  of  native  modesty  most  new  and  inviting  to  him 
— he  continued:  "The  Vice-Prefect  hath  most  truly 
said  that  the  Emperor  punishes  this  odious  Christian 
sect  because  of  their  treasonable  opposition  to  the  mili 
tary  laws,  whereby  they  discourage  enlistments  in  the 
army  and  promote  desertions  therefrom,  and  because 
of  their  abhorrence  of  slavery,  and  because  of  their 
visionary  and  impious  denial  of  private  property  rights, 
and  their  vain  dreams  of  a  democracy  in  which  social 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  41 

and  political  distinctions  between  men  and  classes  shall 
be  abolished ;  but  we  younger  men,  who  love  life  and 
appreciate  all  the  advantages  which  the  benevolent  gods 
of  Rome  have  provided  for  the  patrician  youth,  hate 
these  accursed  Galileans  because  their  harsh,  ascetic 
creed  condemns  as  sin  all  the  pleasant  indulgences 
which  nature  craves,  and  denounce,  as  falsest  idols,  all 
the  propitious  gods  that  sanction  them  !  Ah,  Dorcas, 
who  that  hath  a  human  heart  would  desire  to  live  in  a 
world  where  the  service  of  glorious  Mars  is  denounced 
as  crime  ?  where  the  sacrifices  to  Venus  are  outlawed 
and  despised  ?  where  Bacchus,  ever  beautiful  and  ever 
young,  the  solacer  of  all  sorrows,  the  iuciter  to  all  joys, 
is  held  up  to  detestation  as  a  brutal  god  ?  A  malig 
nant  superstition,  indeed,  must  that  be  that  in  place 
of  leaving  remorse  and  sorrow  for  the  weary  old  age 
that  loathes  life  and  all  the  good  things  of  the  world, 
seeketh  to  crucify  all  human  pleasing  desires  even  in 
the  very  hey-day  of  youth,  and  congeal  every  fount 
of  pleasure  by  the  requirements  of  its  inhuman  creed  ! 
If  thou,  sweet  Dorcas,  hast  been  reared  up  in  the 
scarcely  less  harsh  and  unsocial  religion  of  the  stub 
born  and  ascetic  Jews,  let  no  false  compassion  for 
the  sufferings  of  these  malevolent  Christians  pervert 
thy  heart  and  lead  thee  astray,  but  rather  suffer  me, 
thy  friend  and  admirer,  to  teach  thee  the  tender, 
human,  beautiful  religion  of  holy  Rome,  wherein  some 
delightful  divinity  shall  accept  as  devotion  every 
sacred  right  that  can  minister  to  pleasure,  and  so  recon 
cile  the  heart  to  all  the  calamities  of  fate  which  cannot 


42  DORCAS, 

be  avoided,  by  calling  into  delicious  exercise  every 
faculty  of  mind  and  body  that  can  minister  to  joy  I  O 
beautiful  Dorcas  !  learn  thou  the  true  and  beautiful  re 
ligion  of  sacred,  eternal  Rome  !" 

"  Of  the  natural  results  of  which  thy  birth-night's 
revelry  was  the  only  specimen  which  hath  come  under 
my  observation,"  said  Dorcas,  with  greater  asperity 
than  any  one  had  ever  heard  before  in  her  melodious 
voice. 

u  And  wnat,  O  severe  Vestal,  was  there  wrong  about 
the  feast  ?  The  wine  was  good,  the  edibles  excellent, 
the  gods  propitious,  and  the  girls  surpassingly  pleasant 
and  witty  !" 

"And  if  thou  didst  have  a  sister,  centurion,  couldst 
thou  have  desired  to  see  her  among  those  pleasant, 
witty  girls  ?  If  not,  doth  it  appear  right  to  thee  to 
place  the  sisters  of  some  other  youth  amid  such  sur 
roundings  ?" 

"Dioscuri!"  he  answered.  "These  girls  are  only 
plebeians  !  Why  dost  thou  ask  me  whether  I  would  have 
desired  to  see  my  sister  among  these  ?" 

"Because  thou  didst  send  thy  mother,  Calpha,  to  in 
vite  me  to  join  them ;  and  if  thou  art  without  a  law  to 
teach  thee  that  this  thing  was  wrong,  thou  art  then  a 
law  unto  thyself,  and  thou  oughtest  not  to  place  a 
young  girl  who  never  injured  thee,  and  whom  thou 
.scarcely  knowest  where  thou  thinkest  it  would  have 
disgraced  thy  sister  to  be  found." 

The  young  man,  for  the  first  time  in  his  life,  was 
covered  with  confusion  in  the  presence  of  a  pretty  girl, 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  43 

and  hardly  knew  what  answer  to  make.  The  idea  of 
virtue  in  any  sense  except  that  of  personal  courage  (the 
Roman  signification  of  the  word),  the  idea  of  chastity 
that  loves  only  what  things  are  pure,  and  loves  them  for 
their  own  sake  only,  was  inexplicable  to  him ;  but 
finally,  with  much  embarrassment,  but  with  perfect 
sincerity,  he  replied : 

"  Dorcas,  in  Rome  a  line  of  conduct  that  is  right  and 
proper  to  the  patrician  class  is  impossible  to  the  plebe 
ians  ;  and  conduct  that  is  right  and  proper  enough  for 
the  plebeians  is  utterly  impossible  for  the  patrician. 
Only  the  odious  and  democratic  Christians  assert  the 
brotherhood  of  man,  and  deny  the  privileges  of  rank 
and  fortune,  seeking  to  reduce  all  classes  to  one  com 
mon  level,  which  is  the  tendency  of  that  cruel  asceti 
cism  for  which  we  so  bitterly  hate  them.  So  that  they 
would  not  only  rob  us  of  the  pursuits  and  pleasures 
natural  to  our  age  and  rank,  but  would  deny  the  lower 
classes  those  pleasures  and  advantages  which  they  ob 
tain  by  our  favor,  and  are  cruel  to  both  patrician  and 
plebeian." 

The  young  girl's  pure  and  beautiful  face  grew  very 
pale,  and  a  strange  fire  gleamed  from  her  soft,  expres 
sive  eyes,  as  she  replied  in  low,  penetrating  tones  : 

"  I  do  not  know,  centurion,  how  it  all  may  be  ;  but, 
surely,  if  these  despised  and  persecuted  Christians  have 
hope  in  this  life  only,  they  must  be  of  all  men  most 
miserable.  If  they  teach  and  practice  a  self-denial  so 
severe  as  thou  sayest,  do  they  not  propose  some  glorious 
compensation  for  its  sufferings  ?  What  sublime  reward 


44  DORCAS, 

do  they  offer  to  those  whom  they  would  induce  to  accept 
their  faith,  and  so  crucify  themselves  unto  the  world  ?" 

"  Nothing  that  is  tangible  or  satisfactory — nothing 
definite  or  sure — nothing  except  visionary  promises  of 
everlasting  happiness  beyond  this  life  in  exchange  for 
earthly  wretchedness." 

"If  such  promises  are  built  upon  any  sure  and  trust 
worthy  foundation,"  said  Dorcas,  "  it  seems  to  me  that 
it  would  be  the  part  of  wisdom  to  accept  them — life  is 
so  uncertain,  fortune  so  fickle,  pleasure  so  evanescent. 
And,  indeed,  the  excellent  Epaphras  hath  taught  me 
that  the  great  men  who  built  up  the  mighty  kingdoms 
of  Egypt,  Assyria,  Greece  and  Persia  (and  even  Rome, 
also)  practiced  the  very  same  temperance  and  self-denial 
which  thou  dost  so  bitterly  condemn ;  and  that  the  pre 
valence  of  voluptuousness,  luxury  and  pleasure  among 
such  as  thou  hast  called  the  better  classes  is  ever  the  pre 
cursor  of  national  disaster.  I  know  not  whether  this  be 
true,  but,  if  true,  it  seems  to  me  that  even  for  this  tran 
sient,  earthly  life  sobriety  is  better  than  licentiousness 
for  all  men  of  every  class." 

"True!  true!"  cried  out  the  Vice-Prefect.  "The 
men  that  made  Rome  great,  and  that  acted  their  own 
parts  greatly,  were  never  drunkards,  nor  gluttons,  nor 
great  lovers  of  pleasure  !  Remember  that,  centurion, 
remember  that !" 

Just  then  a  slave  announced  the  evening  meal,  and 
the  conversation  was  suspended  by  their  adjournment 
to  the  great  hall,  which,  in  Roman  dwelling-houses, 
was  more  used  than  any  other  apartment. 


THE   VICE-PKEFECT    ADMIRED    THE   EASE   AXD    ELEGANCE   WITH 
WHICH   SHE  WROTE.— p.  30. 

45 


CHAPTEK  IV. 

IN   WHICH   DORCAS  RUNNETH   AWAY. 

SWIFTLY  and  pleasantly  passed  the  time  for  Dorcas  at 
the  Roman's  beautiful  villa  ;  and  day  by  day  the  brave 
old  Yarus  became  more  and  more  attached  to  his  young 
secretary,  and  day  by  day  she  became  more  necessary 
to  his  happiness,  not  only  as  reader  and  copyist,  but 
also  as  companion  and  friend.  She  was  the  first  chaste, 
cultivated  girl  this  patrician  soldier  had  ever  known. 
The  Roman  wife  was  emphatically  the  mistress  of  the 
house  only ;  and  the  bright,  educated  women  upon 
whom,  in  earlier  life,  his  wandering  fancy  had  been 
fixed  in  temporary  devotion,  were  the  graceful  and 
accomplished  hetairse  of  Greece,  the  coarser  but  still 
attractive  women  of  Rome,  the  seductive  beauties  of 
Egypt,  or  female  adventurers  from  other  provinces  of 
the  vast  Empire,  who  made  their  way  to  public  favor 
and  notoriety  by  mere  physical  perfectness,  or  by 
graceful  accomplishments  and  mental  brightness.  The 
patrician  classes  of  the  Roman  women  were  unedu 
cated,  ill-treated  and  despised.  Marriage  was  a  con 
tract,  a  business  transaction — a  very  important  business, 
matter,  too — to  the  doing  of  which  the  law  compelled 
men  under  onerous  penalties ;  and  Yarus,  having  once 

transacted  this  unpleasant  business,  had  abided  by  the 
46 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  47 

terms  of  the  contract  (which  had  really  been  an  ad 
vantageous  one)  with  an  exemplary  consistency  unusual 
and  honorable  at  Home.  His  own  daughters  had  died 
before  reaching  maturity,  and,  although  he  was  a  good 
father,  he  had  never  realized  the  sentiment  of  elevated 
and  pleasant  affection  and  companionship  before  Dorcas 
came  to  dwell  in  his  house.  They  had  long  and  frequent 
conversations,  not  only  upon  the  subjects  of  which  his 
manuscripts  treated,  but  upon  general  questions  of 
ethics  and  religion.  Strangely  enough,  the  girl  had 
never  avowed  openly  any  religious  convictions,  a  fact 
which  he  naturally  accounted  for  by  his  belief  that  she 
was  a  Jewess,  between  whom  and  a  Pagan  there  could 
be  found  no  common  grounds  for  compatibility  of  senti 
ments.  But  the  life  they  were  leading  was  very  pleasant 
to  both  of  them.  The  aged  warrior  and  the  young  girl 
conceived  a  strong  friendship  for  each  other,  founded 
upon  mutual  respect  and  mutual  tolerance.  He  vastly 
admired  the  transparent  delicacy,  purity,  and  intelli 
gence  of  the  chaste  young  spirit  with  which  he  was 
brought  into  daily  contact,  and  she  gladly  honored  a 
nature  so  true,  manly  and  straightforward  as  his  ever 
appeared  to  be. 

Upon  a  single  point  they  seemed  to  be  utterly  unable 
to  comprehend  each  other.  The  Vice-Prefect's  idea  of 
right  was  that  it  consisted  of  what  the  laws  require  one 
to  do,  or  to  omit,  and  of  whatever  was  considered  to 
be  usual  and  honorable  in  a  Roman  of  rank.  He  could 
not  comprehend  her  thought  that  right  exists  inde 
pendently  of  all  Roman  statutes  and  customs — civil, 


48  DORCAS, 

military  or  religious ;  and  that  these  were  to  be  tried 
by  some  standard  above  and  beyond  the  reach  of  all 
Roman  jurisprudence,  civil  or  military.  She  was  in 
capable  of  understanding  how  it  was  possible  that  so 
good  a  man  could  be  satisfied  with  the  doing  of  every 
duty  imposed  by  law,  custom  or  religion,  seeming  to  be 
profoundly  ignorant  of  any  higher  sense  of  obligation, 
or  of  any  purer  standard  of  ethics.  But  there  was  no 
jarring  or  discord  between  them,  and  their  discussions 
commonly  terminated  in  an  amicable  recognition  of  the 
fact  that  some  things  which  seemed  to  be  familiar  as 
household  words  to  one  were  an  unintelligible  jargon  to 
the  others.  He  naturally  attributed  it  to  the  fact  that  she 
was  a  woman,  and,  therefore,  naturally  subject  to  intel 
lectual  hysterics,  or  mental  obtuseness,  as  all  other 
women  are. 

The  relations  existing  between  herself  and  the  young 
centurion  gradually  assumed  a  strange  and  almost  in 
definable  shape.  It  would  not  be  entirely  incorrect  to  say 
that  he  failed  to  comprehend  the  passion  for  her  which 
was  daily  becoming  more  and  more  a  part  of  his  exist 
ence.  Any  sentiment  of  pity  for  her  personally,  or  any 
regard  for  the  chastity  of  which  she  was  the  living  em 
bodiment,  was  beyond  the  range  of  his  experience.  The 
Roman  youth  of  his  age  and  rank  was  incapable  of  either 
understanding  or  believing  in  any  such  thing,  even  among 
the  girls  whom  he  might  regard  as  his  equals,  and 
among  whom  he  expected  that  he  would  some  day  be 
compelled  to  select  a  wife.  In  fact,  that  genuine  mod 
esty  which  loves  and  cherishes  whatever  is  pure  for  its 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  4S 

own  sake,  was  incomprehensible  to  both  sexes  in  the 
higher  classes  of  that  age.  They  knew  that  marriage 
meant  a  contract  into  which  no  man  but  an  idiot  would 
enter  because  of  any  merely  sentimental  preference — a 
contract  that,  however  repulsive  it  might  be  and  gene 
rally  was,  ought  to  be  justified  by  the  social  and  politi 
cal  advantages  to  be  reaped  from  it.  As  for  what  they 
denominated  "love,"  it  was  the  fashion  to  seek  it  else 
where  than  in  the  marital  relation  ;  and  a  Roman  who 
was  actually  in  love  with  his  wife  would  generally  have 
been  an  object  of  ridicule  and  contemptuous  pity.  And 
yet,  after  Marcellus  had  first  met  Dorcas  with  such 
boisterous  demonstrations  of  his  preference  for  her,  he 
had  never  ventured  upon  any  similar  advances ;  why, 
he  could  not  have  told.  He  therefore  found  himself 
daily  becoming  more  and  more  hopelessly  enamored  of 
a  girl  who  quietly  but  continually  became  more  and 
more  unapproachable  to  him.  It  was  a  monstrous  para 
dox  in  his  experience,  and  he  would  have  laughed  loud 
and  mockingly  if  he  had  discovered  any  one  of  his  as 
sociates  in  a  position  at  once  so  inexplicable  and  so  tan 
talizing. 

Without  seeming  to  do  so,  she  had  carefully  avoided 
giving  him  an  opportunity  to  see  her  alone,  and  yet,  in 
the  presence  of  his  father  or  mother,  she  had  met  him 
without  a  shadow  of  embarrassment  and  with  unvary 
ing  kindness.  She  really  enjoyed  being  with  him.  He 
was  certainly  the  handsomest  young  man  she  had  ever 
seen,  and  his  rollicking  and  boisterous  manners  and 
self-conceit  did  not  seem  to  be  much  out  of  place  in  one 


50  DORCAS, 

who  was  so  young,  an  only  son  and  heir  to  such  splen 
did  advantages.  He  was  so  quick,  so  intelligent,  so 
kind  and  generous,  and  of  such  sterling  integrity  ac 
cording  to  the  light  by  which  he  walked,  that  it  was  im 
possible  to  be  near  him  without  feeling  the  almost 
irresistible  magnetism  of  his  healthy,  hearty,  manl}- 
character  and  person.  And  yet  to  her  this  splendid 
youth  seemed  maimed  and  dwarfed  in  the  immortal 
part  of  him,  and,  knowing  the  moral  deformity  which 
paganism  had  produced  in  him,  in  common  with  all  the 
youth  of  his  rank  in  the  great  heathen  empire,  she  felt 
a  certain  indefinable  sense  of  pity  and  compassion  for 
the  undeveloped  spiritual  nature  which  she  believed 
must  be  inherent  in  a  physical  and  intellectual  organi 
zation  so  robust  and  beautiful.  True,  she  herself  was 
but  fifteen  years  of  age,  and  the  colder  blood  of  the 
north  which  temperately  flowed  through  her  brain  and 
heart,  had  permitted  her  swift  and  bright  intellect  to 
grow  and  blossom  wonderfully  under  the  careful  and 
life-long  tutelage  by  which  she  had  profited,  while,  in 
every  physical  sense,  she  was  little  more  than  a  child, 
at  an  age  at  which  the  warmer-blooded  daughters  of 
Italy  were  passionate  women  on  all  the  sensuous  sides  of 
existence,  and  children  in  all  other  things. 

The  twain  seemed  in  many  particulars  to  be  typical 
of  the  antagonistic  systems  under  which  they  had  been 
reared.  He  was  a  fit  type  of  the  hard,  practical,  physi 
cal  life  of  splendid  Rome,  with  its  vast  and  truthful 
boastings  of  action  and  achievement — she  of  another 
and  utterly  different  civilization — a  system  that  exalted 


THE  DAUGHTER  OP  FAUSTINA.  51 

spiritual  life  and  regarded  with  scorn,  or,  at  least,  with 
indifference,  all  of  the  pomp  and  splendor  of  the  world 
in  which  Eome  gloried — a  system  which  boldly  taught, 
in  the  very  teeth  of  all  of  the  wisdom  of  the  ancients, 
and  all  of  the  practice  of  the  centuries,  the  utter  injus 
tice  of  all  class  distinctions  and  prerogatives,  and  the 
worth  and  dignity  of  man,  not  as  kings,  nobles,  philoso 
phers  or  millionaires  ;  not  as  Romans,  Greeks,  Jews  or 
barbarians,  but  simply  as  man — a  truth  unknown  to 
human  philosophy  and  statesmanship  until  Jesus  Christ 
proclaimed  it. 

Often  and  over  again  these  salient  and  irreconcilable 
differences  cropped  up  out  of  even  the  simplest  and  most 
informal  conversations,  and  both  the  Vice-Prefect  and 
the  centurion  would  listen  with  wonder,  respect  and  in 
terest  to  the  young  girl,  yet  almost  a  child,  who,  quietly 
and  modestly,  but  persistently,  dared  to  maintain  that 
war,  in  which  Rome  gloried,  was  only  national  crime 
and  legalized  murder ;  that  slavery,  which  was  sanc 
tioned  by  the  laws  and  religion  of  the  empire  and 
the  practice  of  all  ages  and  of  all  peoples,  was  con 
trary  to  the  will  of  God  and  to  the  honest,  unbiased 
deliverance  of  every  man's  consciousness  ;  that  all  class 
distinctions  founded  upon  accidents  of  birth,  rank  or 
fortune  were  a  wrong  to  the  people  ;  and  that  the  legal 
right  to  hold,  acquire  and  transmit  private  property- 
rights  served  only  to  foster  inhuman  selfishness,  and 
to  give  immortality  to  fraud,  pride,  tyranny  and  injus 
tice.  These  radical  opinions  were  never  uttered  by  the 
young  girl  as  if  she  had  learned  and  repeated  from 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAU8TINIA.  53 

memory  lessons  at  variance  with  the  laws  and  usages  of 
Rome,  nor  with  the  dogmatic  air  which  characterized 
the  utterances  of  the  philosophers  ;  but  as  if  they  were 
the  inspiration  of  convictions  too  profound  for  argu 
ment — the  outpourings  of  some  hidden  but  living  well- 
spring  of  feeling  and  of  thought.  This  intellectual  and 
moral  purity  and  strength  in  a  young  and  beautiful  girl 
was  something  so  new,  strange  and  attractive  to  both 
father  and  son,  that  often  after  some  sudden,  almost 
sybilline  utterance  that  seemed  to  flow  spontaneously 
from  the  very  depths  of  her  pellucid  soul,  Varus  would 
say  : 

"  She  hath  a  daimon,  centurion  !" 

And  Marcellus  would  answer:  "Yea,  Vice-Prefect — 
a  wise  and  beautiful  daimon  !" 

And  this  explanation  of  a  womanly  intelligence  and 
chastity  of  thought  and  feeling  which  was  phenomenal 
in  the  experience  of  these  two  excellent  Romans,  as  it 
would  have  been  in  the  experience  of  almost  all  men 
of  their  rank  in  the  Imperial  City,  was  confirmed  to 
their  minds  by  the  strange  fact  that  Dorcas  habitually 
stated  things  in  the  form  of  questions  or  suggestions 
that  cut  down  to  the  very  tap-roots  of  polytheism,  and 
of  all  the  social  and  political  life  of  Rome. 

One  evening,  sitting  in  the  shade  of  the  trees  (more 
than  half  the  life  of  the  Romans  was  passed  out  of 
doors),  the  Vice-Prefect  was  explaining  to  Dorcas  and 
Marcellus  a  plan  of  the  great  city,  and  expatiating  upon 
the  glory  and  greatness  of  Rome,  as  he  pointed  out  an 
arch  here  which  indicated  a  triumph  of  the  Roman  arms 


54  DOM  CAS, 

in  Britain,  that  showed  the  subjection  of  great  warlike 
tribes  in  Gaul,  and  the  other  similar  successes  in  Ger- 
mania.  Here  were  mementos  of  victories  in  Africa,  in 
Asia — almost  throughout  the  world. 

"  Thus  you  perceive,"  said  Varus,  "  that  holy  Rome, 
under  the  protection  of  the  immortal  and  favorable 
gods,  hath  triumphed  over  the  nations  of  mankind,  and 
compelled  them  to  contribute  to  her  grandeur  and  her 
glory.  Centurion,  never  forget  how  magnificent  and 
glorious  is  thy  native  Rome,  nor  how  the  benevolent 
gods  have  favored  thee  by  giving  thce  honorable  birth 
and  position  in  the  all-illustrious  empire,  nor  that  it 
must  be  the  labor  of  thy  life  to  add  to  her  renown." 

Then  said  Dorcas  quietly  :  "  How  many  people  are  in 
Rome,  Vice-Prefect  ?" 

"More  than  four  millions,"  answered  Varus,  "a 
number  unequaled  by  any  city  in  the  world." 

"  And  how  many  of  them  are  slaves,  Vice-Prefect  ?" 

"  About  two-thirds  of  them  are  slaves,"  said  he. 

"  Then,"  said  Dorcas,  "  if  the  same  ratio  hold  good 
throughout  Italy,  dost  thou  not  think  that  the  '  liberty 
and  glory  '  of  which  thou  dost  so  fondly  boast  are 
words  which  have  no  meaning  to  by  far  the  greater  part 
of  the  Romans  ?  or  is  it  true,  Vice-Prefect,  that  just  as 
the  government  of  Rome  hath  advanced  in  all  physical 
power  and  progress,  the  condition  of  the  slaves,  and  of 
all  the  poor,  hath  become  continually  harder  and  more 
hopeless ;  so  that  the  grandeur  for  which  thou  dost 
magnify  thy  gods  has  been,  in  truth,  the  pride  and  glory 
of  the  few  only,  and  the  ever-increasing  curse  and  bur- 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  55 

den  of  the  many  ?  Dost  thou  not  think  it  had  been 
better  to  have  had  less  glory  for  the  few  who  have  a 
living  interest  in  the  affairs  of  government,  and  greater 
liberty  and  comfort  for  the  vast  multitude  upon  whom 
the  waste  and  weight  of  all  this  glory  rests,  and  none 
of  its  advantages  ?" 

"Why,  the  slaves  never  think  of  these  things,"  said 
Marcellus,  "and  if  they  did  there  would  be  endless  ser 
vile  war." 

"  Do  the  gods,  also,  control  the  destinies  of  the  slaves 
and  of  the  poor  ?"  asked  Dorcas. 

"  Certainly  !  All  men  are  under  the  immortal  gods," 
said  Varus,  "  in  whom  we  move  and  have  our  being." 

"  How  many  of  thy  gods  are  there  ?"  asked  Dorcas. 

"  The  Flamen  of  Jupiter  cannot  answer  that  to  thee." 

"And  which  of  them,"  asked  Dorcas,  "  is  the  especial 
protector  of  the  slaves  and  of  the  poor  ?  Which  of 
them  giveth  his  divine  compassion  and  unfailing  aid  to 
these  unfortunates  who  constitute  the  great  masses  of 
the  Roman  people  ?  What  are  the  names  of  the  divini 
ties  that  invite  the  adoration  and  solicit  the  worship  of 
the  slaves  and  of  the  plebeians  V  Who  more  need 
divine  assistance  in  proportion  as  they  are  deprived  of 
all  human  respect,  and  of  all  the  advantages  of  life  ? 
What  kind  divinity  stands  pledged  to  give  justice,  pro 
tection,  blessings  unto  the  plebeians  and  slaves  ?" 

"I  never  thought  of  that  before,"  answered  Varus. 
"  All  other  classes  have  their  own  protecting  gods — even 
pirates,  pauderers  and  thieves — but  there  are  no  espe 
cial  divinities  for  the  slaves  and  plebeians  as  such." 


56  DORCAS, 

"  Ah !  then,"  said  Dorcas,  "  it  doth  seem  to  me  that 
if  some  splendid  and  compassionate  god  should  take  his 
station  in  your  Pantheon,  and  cry  aloud  to  these  des 
pised  and  afflicted  people,  '  Come  unto  Me,  all  ye  that 
labor  and  are  heavy  laden,  and  I  will  give  you  rest  I 
Take  My  yoke  upon  you  and  learn  of  Me  ;  for  I,  the 
Divinity,  am  meek  and  lowly  in  heart,  and  ye  shall  find 
rest  unto  your  lives ;  for  My  yoke  is  easy  and  My  bur 
den  light ' — it  seems  to  me  that  such  a  divinity  would 
be  loved  and  worshiped  by  the  common  people  with 
such  adoration  as  Jupiter  hath  never  known  !" 

"Why,"  said  Varus,  "  thou  hast  uttered,  in  thy 
strange  and  beautiful  fancy,  almost  such  teachings  as 
the  odious  Christian  sect  ascribe  to  Jesus,  except  that 
while  they  proclaim  a  savior  for  the  slaves  and  ple 
beians,  as  thou  hast  fancied,  they  deny  the  great  gods 
who  protect  the  mighty  Eoman  state,  and  all  that  is  re 
spectable  therein." 

"  Dost  thou  suppose,  then,"  said  Dorcas,  "  that  it  was 
on  this  very  account  that  the  great  Emperors  Tibe 
rius,  Domitian,  Trajan,  Antoninus,  Severus,  Maximin, 
Decius,  Gallus,  Valerian,  Diocletian,  and  now  Maxen- 
tius,  have  always  pursued  and  punished  these  Chris 
tians  ?  Indeed,  I  have  often  heard  the  wise  and  learned 
Epaphras  declare  that  the  Pharisees  and  Scribes,  who 
were  the  rich  and  respectable  classes  of  his  countrymen, 
crucified  the  poor  and  friendless  Jesus,  because '  they 
were  covetous,'  and  He  taught  the  communion  of  saints, 
which  is  community  of  property  and  rights,  and  that 
all  men  are  born  free  and  equal,  a  gospel  for  the  poor 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  57 

that  would  abolish  slavery  and  war,  and  would  either 
level  down  the  patricians  to  an  equality  with  the  ple 
beians,  or  level  upwards  and  raise  the  plebeians  to 
equality  with  the  patricians,  as  I  have  heard  thee  also 
say  these  Christians  do  still  teach." 

"Verily,"  answered  Varus,  "the  Christians  do  so 
teach ;  and  the  strangest  thing  to  me  is  that  thy  ques 
tions  do  evermore  bring  up  things  in  such  a  curious 
light  that  one  is,  for  the  moment,  almost  compelled  to 
believe  that  these  abominable  heresies  which  would  de 
stroy  the  empire  are  right  and  true  and  best  for  the 
multitude.  But,  much  as  it  pleaseth  me  to  hear  thy 
strange  suggestions,  which  do  continually  provoke  the 
mind  to  follow  new  and  wonderful  lines  of  thought  that 
I  have  not  found  in  Greek  or  Roman  philosophy,  I  must 
leave  thee  now  and  go  into  the  city,  for  there  are  im 
pending  disturbances  that  will  require  my  presence  there 
to-night.  Dorcas,  fare  thee  well.  Centurion,  farewell." 

Then,  under  the  seductive  power  of  that  soft  Italian 
air,  the  west  still  rosy  with  the  just  sunken  sun,  there 
was  silence  between  the  young  and  beautiful  couple— a 
dangerous  silence,  in  which  the  fond  emotions  of  all 
tender  hearts  were  quickly  brought  to  bloom  even  long 
before  old  Hesiod  sung : 

"  0  Hesperus  !  thoubringest  all  good  things  !" 

"See,  Dorcas,"  said  Marcellus,  "how  brilliantly  the 
star  of  evening  gleameth  even  through  the  half-light  of 
day  still  lingering  in  the  sky  !  Canst  thou  sing,  Dorcas, 
that  divine  hymn  in  which  Hesiod  celebrates  the  kind 
god,  Hesperus  ?" 


58  DORCAS, 

"  Nay,"  replied  Dorcas,  "  for  I  was  never  taught  the 
classic  melodies  of  Greece  and  Rome  ;  but  I  can  sing  a 
pretty  little  song  which,  Epaphras  saith,  was  a  favorite 
witli  my  mother,  and  which,  he  saith  also,  is  a  transla 
tion,  or  rather  an  imitation,  of  the  Greek  poet's  sweet 
est  hymn." 

"  Dorcas,  sing  thou  that  song  for  me  !" 

Then  the  girl  sang,  to  a  low,  soothing  melody,  the 
following  words : 

"O  Hesperus,  that  burnest  bright 
As  gems  upon  the  brow  of  night ! 
Thou  bringest  weary  toil,  oppressed 
By  labor  and  by  sorrows,  rest, 
And  sleep,  the  comforter. 

"  Thou  bringest  cattle  to  the  stall ; 
Sheep  to  the  fold,  men  to  the  hall ; 
The  wild  bird  to  her  leafy  nest, 
The  babe  unto  the  mother's  breast, 
The  ship  to  havens  safe  ! 

"  Thou  bringest  dew  unto  the  flowers, 
And  coolness  to  the  glowing  hours  ; 
To  peaceful  homes  fond  thoughts,  that  prove 
How  sweet  is  tender  human  love, 
And  confidence  and  trust ! 

"  0  Hesperus  !  as  thy  mellow  light 
Soothes,  blesses,  glorifies  the  night, 
So  may  our  faith  in  Him,  whose  care 
Preserves  thy  large  and  gleaming  sphere, 
Preserve  our  spirits  pure  ! 

a  Raise  Thou  our  hopes  and  trust  above  ! 
Shed  on  our  hearts,  like  dew,  Thy  love  ! 
From  sin  and  selfishness  set  free, 
Let  us,  O  Lord,  commune  with  Thee 
In  perfect  faith  and  love  !  " 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  59 

"Dorcas,  I  thank  thee.  It  is  very  beautiful,"  said 
Marcellus,  drawing  closer  to  the  young  girl  upon  the 
rustic  bench  upon  which  all  three  had  been  sitting  be 
fore  the  departure  of  Varus.  The  centurion  gazed  into 
her  beautiful  face  with  eyes  of  infinite  tenderness  and 
longing,  as  he  said,  in  the  low  tones  of  suppressed  but 
passionate  emotion : 

"Why  dost  them  always  shun  me,  Dorcas  ?  During 
all  the  time  thou  hast  made  thine  abode  with  us  I  have 
sought,  but  could  never  find,  an  opportunity  to  speak 
with  thee  alone ;  and  even  this  evening  I  feared  that 
thou  wouldst  leave  me  when  the  Vice-Prefect  departed, 
as  thou  hast  ever  done.  Why  art  thou  so  distant,  cruel 
and  hard  with  me  ?  For  if  I  were  too  bold  and  pre 
sumptuous  with  thee  when  we  did  first  meet,  thou 
shouldst  forgive  me,  for  1  did  not  then  know  thee,  and 
supposed  that  thou  wert  as  other  Roman  maidens  who 
would  .have  been  delighted  to  be  so  caressed.  But, 
Dorcas,  I  honor  thee  more  than  any  woman  upon  the 
earth,  and  thou  must  not  be  so  hard  and  unfriendly." 

The  young  girl  grew  very  pale  beneath  the  subtle  fire 
in  his  pleading  eyes  and  the  tender  music  of  his  voice. 
She  arose,  however,  and  in  the  act  of  going,  said  very 
kindly : 

"Centurion,  I  have  never  been  unfriendly  to  thee.  I 
have  ever  felt  great  kindness  toward  thee  :  nevertheless 
it  had  been  proper  for  me  to  have  left  thee  as  soon  as 
thy  father  departed,  and  I  must  do  so  now.  Fare  thee 
well  I" 

But  as  Dorcas  turned  away  the  young  man  seized  her 


60  DORCAS, 

hands,  and  with  very  gentle  but  superior  force  drew  her 
back  into  the  seat  beside  him,  saying": 

"Nay,  Dorcas,  thou  shalt  not  leave  me  so.  I  love 
thee,  girl,  with  all  my  soul.  By  Venus  Yictrix  and  all 
other  gods  I  swear  that,  of  all  women  in  the  world,  I 
care  for  thee  only ;  and  thou  shalt  have  such  honor  and 
devotion  of  my  heart  as  no  other  maiden  in  all  Home 
enjoyeth  if  thou  canst  love  me,  Dorcas.  O  dear  one, 
love  me  !  love  me  !  love  me  !" 

In  an  ecstacy  of  passion  and  longing  he  threw  his  arms 
around  the  trembling  girl,  drew  her  to  his  throbbing 
heart  and  pressed  his  burning  lips  to  hers.  It  was  a 
sore  trial  for  the  3*011  thful  girl.  For  one  brief,  exquisite 
moment  she  yielded  to  the  imperious  power  of  love  that 
submerged  her  being  like  a  bath  of  flame,  while  all  her 
heart  yearned  for  the  affection  of  the  rare  and  glorious 
3"outh  who  Avooed  her  with  such  passionate  devotion. 
But  instantly  the  relentless  sense  of  right  and  of  duty 
crushed  down  her  yearning  heart,  and,  gently  disen 
gaging  herself  from  his  passionate  embrace,  she  spake 
in  tones  from  which  even  her  resolute  and  chastened 
will  vainly  strove  to  shut  out  the  vibrant  trill  of  tender 
ness  that  would  make  itself  heard  in  every  syllable  : 

"Nay,  nay,  centurion;  this  cannot  be!  Farewell, 
Marcellus  !  This  can  never  be  !" 

"But  why  not,  Dorcas?  Yea,"  he  cried,  with  all 
his  soul  shining  in  his  burning  eyes,  "thou  dost  love 
me,  Dorcas ;  thou  canst  not  lie  to  me,  thou  dearest 
girl !  Thou  canst  not  gaze  into  mine  e3"es  and  sa3r,  '  I 
love  thee  not !'  Try  it,  Dorcas.  Look  thou  upon  me, 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  61 

and  answer  truthfully  from  thy  heart,  Dost  not  thou 
love  me,  Dorcas  ?" 

She  had  never  learned  to  lie ;  she  could  not  do  so ; 
she  felt  that  the  young  ~aan's  tender,  pleading  voice 
and  eyes  extorted  the  confession  from  her  lips,  and, 
gazing  upon  him  with  the  seriousness  of  an  infinite 
affection,  she  replied : 

"  Yea,  Marcellus,  it  is  even  true,  I  love  thee  dearly ; 
I  love  thee  with  my  soul. "  Then,  with  inexpressible 
sadness,  she  continued:  "Now,  thou  dear  Marcellus, 
let  me  go  hence.  It  is  all  over ;  this  is  the  end  of  all ; 
I  have  told  thee  that  it  cannot,  cannot  be.  Farewell !" 

"Nay,"  he  cried,  exulting  in  the  triumph  that  had 
wrung  from  her  lips  that  full  confession  of  her  love,  and 
holding  fast  her  little  hands  in  both  of  his,  "thou  shalt 
not  go.  If  thou  dost  love  me,  why  say  '  It  cannot  be  '  ? 
By  all  the  gods  of  Rome,  thou  shalt  be  mine  !  Why 
talkest  thou  so  sadly  and  so  foolishly  ?  I  am  young 
and  wealthy  and  honorable,  and  I  will  devote  my  life  to 
thy  happiness.  Respect  and  love  and  every  indulgence 
and  elegance  that  rank  and  wealth  can  yield  thee  shall 
be  thine.  Think  of  thy  hard  and  lonely  life,  dear  Dor 
cas,  with  its  privations,  its  unending  toil,  its  social 
solitude  and  occlusion  from  all  that  is  bright  and  joy 
ous  and  beautiful  in  life  !  Think  of  the  half-servile  sta 
tion  which  degradeth  thee,  and  then  think  that  with 
me  there  is  naught  the  gods  can  give  which  thou  shalt 
lack.  O  beautiful  and  beloved  Dorcas,  if  thou  lovest 
me  even  a  little,  it  is  mere  madness  and  folly  to  say, 
' It  cannot  be.'  Come  thou  to  me,  love  !  Be  mine  1" 


62  DORCAS, 

"  Nay,"  said  the  girl  softly.  "Permit  me  to  depart, 
centurion.  I  tell  thee  that  it  is  impossible.  I  do  love 
thee  dearly,  and  T  hope  thou  wilt  not  doubt  that  I  have 
bestowed  upon  thee  my  first  and  only  love,  which  shall 
be  thine  forever.  But,  much  as  I  admire  and  love  thee, 
I  tell  thee  truly  that  I  would  welcome  any  form  of 
death  rather  than  remain  with  thee  as  thou  wishest.  It 
is  impossible,  it  cannot  be.  Farewell !" 

But  he  held  her  hands  fast,  exclaiming  :  "  There  was 
never  such  a  maiden  in  the  world  as  thou.  Thou  lovest 
me,  and  thou  knowest  that  my  very  heart  is  thine ;  and 
yet  thou  dost  reject  all  that  my  ardent  affection  is  pray 
ing  to  bestow  upon  thee  ;  and  thou  preferest  poverty  and 
toil  and  self-denial,  and  even  death  itself,  without  me, 
to  pleasure,  ease  and  elegance  in  my  loving  arms  ;  and 
thou  dost  starve  both  of  our  hearts  !  It  is  most  cruel, 
unnatural,  inexplicable !  I  desire  to  know,  and  have 
the  right  to  know,  the  reason,  if  there  can  be  any 
reason,  for  this  course  of  thine,  which  every  girl  in 
Rome  would  surely  censure  as  most  unjust  and  cruel ! 
Or  dost  thou  wound  me  so  bitterly  and  thine  own  heart 
through  mere  womanly  vanity  and  perverseness  with 
out  a  cause  V" 

Then  stood  she  up  most  pale  and  resolute.  She  knew 
well  the  feelings  and  opinions  of  that  great  Roman 
world  to  which  the  youth  belonged,  and  understood  per 
fectly  that  her  refusal  to  accept  as  her  lover  the  only 
man  she  loved,  who  was  so  passionately  attached  to  her, 
must  seem  to  him  to  be,  as  he  had  said,  cruel,  unnatu 
ral  and  inexplicable.  And  so,  pressing  her  hands  upon 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  63 

her  heart  to  still  its  mighty  anguish,  she  gazed  into  his 
eyes  with  a  mournful  tenderness,  saying  : 

"Thou  dear  and  noble  Marcellus,  think  not  I  would 
refuse  thee  for  any  trivial  cause,  or  for  any  cause  that  is 
not  stronger  and  more  imperious  to  my  soul  than  is  the 
love  of  life  or  the  fear  of  death.  Friend,  that  life  which 
thou  desirest  me  to  lead  is  to  me  unpardonable  sin  and 
shame.  Thou  canst  not  understand  it  so,  perhaps,  but 
I  deny  thee  as  I  would  do  if  the  words  should  tear  my 
heart  up  by  the  roots,  because  I  am  a  Christian. 

Then  strange,  tumultuous  changes  swept  like  storms 
across  his  soul  and  left  their  shadows  on  his  face.  His 
first  glance  at  her  upon  her  making  this  damning  avowal 
of  her  faith  in  Christ  was  one  of  utter  loathing  and  con 
tempt,  as  if  she  had  said,  "I  am  a  leper."  But  the 
girl  stood  there  so  quiet,  submissive,  beautiful ;  so  full 
of  sorrow  for  the  pain  she  had  given  him,  and  he  loved 
her  so  much  that  this  first  impulse  of  horror  quickly 
faded  out,  and  the  old,  passionate  yearning  for  her  as 
sumed  a  momentary  sway,  only  to  be  succeeded  by  a 
tempestuous  rage. 

"  A  Christian  !"  he  said,  almost  gnashing  his  teeth  in 
his  convulsive  passion.  "  One  of  the  accursed  sect  that 
hates  the  world.  And  thinkest  thou,  girl,  that  I  am 
weak  and  purposeless  enough  to  suifer  the  hideous 
teachings  of  this  outcast  and  criminal  association  to 
doom  thee  and  myself  to  life-long  sorrow  ?  Ko,  Dios 
curi  !  No  !  by  all  the  shining  gods  of  heaven  !  by  all 
the  kind  and  pitiful  daimons  that  people  earth  and  air ! 
by  all  the  dark  divinities  that  reign  in  hell,  thou  shalt 


64  DORCAS, 

be  mine  !  I  will  reclaim  thee  from  this  baleful  super 
stition,  and  bring  thee  back  into  the  way  of  reason  and 
of  nature !  Even  for  thine  own  sweet  sake,  Dorcas, 
even  by  force  if  thou  refuse,  within  this  hour  thou 
shalt  offer  sacrifice  to  Venus ;  or  I  will  summon  the 
lictors  and  have  thee  dragged  before  the  magistrates 
and  punished,  as  thou  hast  no  doubt  heard  the  Chris 
tian  girls  are  punished  by  the  Emperor.  Prepare  thy 
mind,  Dorcas.  I  love  thee  too  tenderly  to  leave  thee  in 
the  power  of  this  accursed  sect.  I  go  now  to  make 
ready  fit  sacrifices  to  the  beautiful  goddess,  and  straight 
way  will  return  to  teach  thee  her  amiable  and  delight 
ful  service ;  and  so  reclaim  thee,  at  least,  from  this 
malignant  superstition  of  the  Christians." 

Then  turned  he,  and  in  all  the  hurry  of  extreme  agi 
tation,  strode  into  the  house. 

With  clasped  hands  and  streaming  eyes  the  young 
girl  for  a  moment  stood  looking  up  into  the  wide  and 
starry  heaven,  as  if  she  hoped  to  find  somewhere  in  its 
depths  sublime  the  God  of  the  fatherless ;  then  she 
sped  diagonally  across  the  inclosure  in  front  of  the  villa 
to  the  corner  of  the  stone  wall  which  fenced  off  the 
premises  from  the  highway ;  placed  her  hands  upon  the 
top  of  the  wall,  and  lightly  swung  her  agile  form  first 
to  the  top  and  thence  down  into  the  Appian  Way, 
upon  which  magnificent  Eoman  road,  the  grounds  of 
Varus  fronted. 


CHAPTEK  Y. 

IN    WHICH    DORCAS    HEABETII    THE    STORY    OF 
FAUSTINA. 

LIGHTLY  and  swiftly  the  maiden  Dorcas  sped  along 
the  splendid  road,  which  was  almost  deserted  at  that 
hour  of  the  night,  looking  neither  to  the  right  nor  to  the 
left,  nor  pausing  even  a  moment  on  her  breathless  jour 
ney,  mile  after  mile,  until  she  reached  a  point  at  which 
her  way  left  the  road  and  turned  off  abruptly  into  a 
tangled  maze  of  brambles,  underbrush  and  trees  that 
marked  the  site  of  a  former  villa,  long  since  destroyed, 
and  left  to  that  luxuriant  vegetation  which  hides  the 
rough  face  of  desolation  and  decay.  In  the  very  heart 
of  this  wild  waste  she  came  to  a  fragment  of  ancient 
stucco  work,  that  seemed  once  to  have  constituted 
part  of  the  wall  of  a  cellar  or  cistern,  and  passing 
by  this  she  found  an  opening  in  the  side  of  the  adjacent 
hill,  into  which  she  stepped  without  a  moment's 
hesitation.  Dorcas  had  trodden  the  same  road  every 
Seventh  day  since  she  first  went  to  the  villa  of  the 
Vice-Prefect  Varus,  and  the  utter  darkness  into  which 
she  entered  now  was  pleasant  as  one's  return  to  a  be 
loved  home. 

Not  far  from  the  entrance  she  groped  about  with  her 
hands  until  she  found  a  certain  stone  for  which  she 

65 


66  DORCAS, 

sought,  and,  lifting  it,  she  saw  the  welcome  radiance  of 
a  diminutive  lamp,  whose  delicate  shaft  of  flame  was 
always  kept  alive  in  that  hidden  crypt ;  and  by  this 
lamp  she  lighted  one  of  many  others  that  were  care 
fully  deposited  in  the  same  secret  receptacle,  and  then, 
having  carefully  replaced  the  stone  in  its  proper  place, 
she  took  her  lamp  in  her  hand,  and  resumed  her  lonely 
journey.  The  place  she  was  in  was  a  gallery  cut  out  of 
the  rock,  about  eight  feet  high  by  perhaps  ten  feet  in 
width,  the  length  of  which  seemed  to  be  interminable. 
Furlong  after  furlong  she  continued  on  her  way,  now 
turning  into  other  galleries  that  opened  into  that  which 
she  had  first  entered,  treading  the  labyrinth  of  the  vast 
catacombs  with  as  little  hesitation  as  if  she  had  dwelt 
in  their  solitude  and  darkness  all  her  life.  She  was 
alone,  except  for  the  unknoAvu  and  countless  dead  whose 
mortal  remains  slept  peacefully  in  narrow  crypts  cut 
into  the  rocky  sides  of  the  galleries  in  irregular  rows, 
one  over  another,  like  the  windows  in  a  dove-cote. 
Dorcas  had  walked  a  long  distance,  but  at  last  reached  a 
point  where  the  walls  of  several  intersecting  galleries  had 
been  cut  away  in  every  direction,  forming  a  room  having 
capacity  to  accommodate  even  several  hundred  people 
upon  the  wooden  benches  that  occupied  the  floor.  There 
was  also  a  low  platform  upon  the  eastern  side  of  this 
room,  with  a  small  wooden  table  upon  it  and  a  larger 
table  standing  in  front  of  it.  Such  was  the  chapel  in 
which  the  persecuted  Christians  of  that  age  celebrated 
the  ceremonies  of  their  illegal  and  proscribed  faith. 
Having  crossed  this  primitive  chapel,  the  girl  went  on 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  67 

a  short  distance  into  another  gallery  and  paused ;  and, 
having  placed  her  lamp  upon  the  stony  floor,  she  sank 
down  upon  her  knees,  and  burst  into  an  agony  of  tears, 
while  her  slight  form  shook  with  sobs  of  passionate  sor 
row,  and  her  heart  all  vainly  sought  for  peace  in  prayer. 
The  crypt  or  sepulcher  at  which  she  kneeled  was  closed 
up  by  a  slab  of  white  marble,  upon  which  some  loving 
hand  had  cut  an  inscription  like  to  that  shown  in  the 
opening  chapter  of  this  history. 

How  long  the  young  girl  had  been  kneeling  here  in 
anguish  and  in  prayer  she  did  not  know,  but  it  must 
have  been  morning  in  the  upper  world  when,  with 
grave,  sedate  steps,  a  tall  and  handsome  man,  some 
what  past  the  meridian  of  life,  passed  quietly  along  the 
gallery,  and  seeing  first  the  lamp-light  and  then  the 
kneeling  girl,  he  paused,  and  laying  his  hand  lightly 
upon  her  drooping  head,  spoke  in  low  .and  loving  tones 
these  words : 

"Grief,  the  refiner,  that  cometh  unto  all,  hath  come 
early  unto  thee,  my  daughter.  Kemember  thou  that  He 
chasteneth  whom  He  loveth,  and  scourgeth  every  one 
whom  He  receiveth  ;  and  thou  shouldst  lift  up  thy  soul 
to  Him,  having  known,  even  from  thine  infancy,  that  He 
doeth  all  things  well." 

"  O  Father  Epaphras,  it  is  a  sorrow  greater  than  I 
can  bear.  Even  my  prayers  rise  not,  but  fall  back  to  the 
cruel  earth  like  a  poor  bird  with  broken  wing.  Would 
to  God  that  I  had  never  left  this  quiet  holy  place." 

"  No  chastening  for  the  present  seemeth  good,  but 
grievous  rather;  yet  afterwards  it  worketh  out  the 


68  DORCAS, 

peaceable  fruits  of  righteousness.  But  come  thou^ 
Dorcas,  into  the  chapel,  and  tell  me  all  thy  sorrow." 

Then  she  rose  up  and  meekly  followed  him  ;  and, 
having  set  their  lamps  upon  the  table,  they  twain 
seated  themselves  upon  a  bench,  and,  in  a  voice  broken 
repeatedly  by  sobs  of  grief,  she  told  the  presbyter 
Epaphras  of  her  recent  trouble  with  Marcellus  without 
reserve,  not  omitting  even  to  state  the  passionate  em 
brace  and  kisses  he  had  given  her,  and  her  own  tran 
sient  but  boundless  joy  at  the  discovery  of  her  love  for 
him. 

Every  Seventh  day  since  she  had  been  at  the  villa 
Dorcas  had  passed  in  the  catacombs  with  certain  holy 
women,  who  made  their  home  somewhere  in  its  vast 
and  gloomy  recesses,  among  whom,  indeed,  she  had 
been  reared  and  taught ;  and  she  had  always  attended 
the  services  in  the  chapel,  and,  after  services  were  over, 
she  had  always  waited  to  converse  with  him,  and  had 
kept  him  informed  of  almost  every  incident  of  her  life 
while  there.  So  that  while  Epaphras  was  fully  pre 
pared  for  the  story  of  the  passionate  love  the  young 
centurion  had  declared  for  Dorcas,  he  was  not  at  all 
prepared  for  any  such  possibility  as  that  Dorcas  might 
reciprocate  his  love ;  for,  indeed,  the  maiden  had  not 
herself  known  it  until  that  evening,  and  her  confession 
thereof  filled  him  with  sorrow  and  surprise. 

"And  thou  lovest  this  proud  Roman,  the  enemy  of 
thy  friends  and  of  thy  Lord  ?" 

"  Yea,  father,  all  my  heart  runs  out  to  him,  as  waters 
seek  the  sea  !  He  is  so  good  and  noble,  that  if  he  only 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  69 

knew  the  truth  he  would  not  hesitate  to  give  up  his  life 
therefor  !  33ut  alas  !  alas  !  he  does  not  know  I" 

"  Thou  must  abide  here  in  the  catacombs  for  a  long 
time  to  come,"  said  Epaphras.  "  The  liberal  donations 
Varus  gave  to  thee  were  a  most  welcome  contribution 
to  the  treasury  of  the  church,  that  suffereth  so  griev 
ously  from  the  persecution  which  Diocletian  began,  and 
which  Maxentius  continueth ;  but  if  it  were  ten  thou 
sand  times  as  much,  thou  shouldst  not  place  thyself  for 
one  hour  in  this  heathen's  power  to  gain  it.  Thou  shalt 
remain  here,  and  shalt  not  go  forth  again  unless  I  may 
even  find  some  other  home  for  thee.  The  Vice-Prefect 
Varus  is  an  honorable  man,  but  there  are  few  like  him 
in  this  heathen  Home ;  and  thou  shalt  go  to  none  whom 
I  do  not  thoroughly  know  and  trust.  But  thou  art  now 
a  woman,  Dorcas,  and  the  first  sorrow  of  thy  life  hath 
come  upon  thee.  It  is  fitting  that  I  tell  thee  of  thy 
mother,  Faustina,  whose  last  resting-place  thou  know- 
est,  and  if  thou  wilt  take  to  heart  her  glorious  example, 
thou  shalt  be  fortified  to  overcome  the  temptations  of 
the  world,  the  devil  and  the  flesh." 

"  Thy  mother  was  the  daughter  of  the  Cimbrian  chief 
tain  Segestus,  whom  thy  grandmother,  his  wife,  did 
follow  to  Rome  when  Germanicus  brought  him  hither 
to  grace  his  triumph  after  the  manner  of  the  Romans. 
Thy  mother  was  thus  born  in  Rome  ;  and  when  she 
had  grown  up  to  womanhood  in  the  faith  of  Jesus,  she 
was  married  to  the  youthful  presbyter  Eugenius.  He 
was  martyred  by  the  Jews  of  Celicia  when  on  a  journey 
to  Jerusalem,  at  the  time  that  thou  wast  one  year  old  ; 


70  DORCAS, 

yet,  spite  of  earthly  sorrows,  she  gloried  in  his  death. 
A  year  after  that,  when  certain  Christians  of  our  com 
munity  were  called  to  martyrdom  in  the  Circus  Maxi- 
mus,  thy  mother  Faustina  insisted  upon  going  to  witness 
the  glorious  spectacle  and  see  for  herself  how  faith 
can  triumph  even  over  death.  We  did  fear  that  the 
scene  might  unduly  agitate  one  who  had  been  physi 
cally  delicate  ever  since  the  news  of  thy  father's  mart}rr- 
dom  had  come  to  us  ;  and  when  we  found  that  she 
would  not  be  dissuaded,  we  solemnly  warned  her  that 
the  slightest  expression  of  sympathy  for  those  who  were 
called  upon  to  suifer  for  their  Lord,  or  the  slightest 
condemnation  of  those  who  persecuted  them,  might 
subject  her  to  the  like  trial  at  the  hands  of  the  jealous 
Romans.  Then  she  and  other  Christians  mingled  with 
the  crowd  that  had  collected  to  witness  the  departure 
of  our  brethren  on  their  way  sublime.  When  the  ex 
ecutioners  approached  their  bound  victims  they  began 
to  chant  the  glorious  words  of  Paul,  '  O  grave,  where  is 
thy  victory  ?  O  death,  where  is  thy  sting  ?'  And 
almost  at  the  moment  that  the  fatal  blows  descended 
upon  them,  the  young  mother,  standing  beside  me,  on 
the  edge  of  the  crowd,  shouted  in  a  clear,  triumphant 
voice,  whose  sweet  and  solemn  cadence  filled  the  vast 
space  around  :  '  Thanks  be  to  God,  which  giveth  them 
the  victory  through  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ !' 

"Almost  immediately  a  centurion  cried  out:  'This 
woman  also  calleth  on  the  accursed  Galilean  I'  and  he 
rushed  forward  to  seize  her.  Then  said  I  unto  her : 
'  Give  me  thy  child,  Faustina !'  Then  the  centurion 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA. 


71 


haled  her  before  the  magistrates  who  had  come  to  "wit 
ness  the  enforcement  of  their  judgment,  saying  :  l  This 
woman  hath  now  called  upon  God  and  Christ  here  in 


"THY  MOTHER  DID  KISS  THEE  AND  MAKE  THE  SIGN  OF 
THE  CROSS  UPON  THEE." 


the  presence  of  the  magistrates  and  of  the  soldiers  ;' 
and  when  they  questioned  her  concerning  the  same,  she 
boldly  avowed  her  faith  in  Jesus.  Then  said  the  chief 
magistrate  unto  her  :  '  If  thou  wilt  lodge  with  this  cen- 


72  DORCAS, 

turion  to-night,  and  in  the  morning  make  thy  sacrifice 
to  Venus,  thoumay'st  live  ;  if  not,  thou  shalt  die  !' 

"  Then  answered  thy  mother  :  '  I  prefer  the  sword  to 
the  centurion,  and  death  rather  than  idolatry  ;  nor  need 
thou  delay,  for  I  do  love  and  worship  Christ  both  now 
and  to-morrow.' 

"  Then  ordered  they  the  centurion  to  lead  Faustina  to 
the  executioners,  and  as  they  were  crossing  the  open 
space  between,  I  swiftly  stepped  forward  and  said  to 
the  centurion :  '  This  is  the  woman's  babe ;  may  she  not 
bid  the  child  farewell  V  Then  the  Roman  halted  them 
that  were  with  him,  and  thy  mother  did  kiss  thee,  and 
did  make  the  sign  of  the  cross  upon  thee,  and  while  she 
was  doing  this  she  turned  away  from  the  centurion,  and 
I  said  unto  her  :  '  Faustina,  dost  thou  desire  the  Anas- 
tasis  ?' 

"  And  with  a  smile  she  answered  :  '  Nay,  but  to  de 
part,  and  to  be  with  Christ,  which  is  far  better  !  Care 
thou  and  our  community  for  the  babe  !' 

"  Then  I  perceived  of  a  truth  that  she  had  come 
thither  in  order  to  go  hence  by  the  sacred  way,  as  so 
many  of  our  people  also  have  done,  until  the  church 
forbade  us  to  seek  for  martyrdom. 

"  And  so  she  went  forward  chanting  the  psalm  of  vic 
tory,  and  with  a  sword  those  men  struck  off  her  head. 

"  Thou  wilt  see  upon  her  tomb  the  Hebrew  word 
'Shalom,'  which  signifieth  peace.  Thou  wilt  see  the 
green  branch,  signifying  everlasting  life.  Thou  wilt  see 
the  symbol  of  martrydom,  and  next  to  it  the  urn,  sig 
nifying  Christian  burial.  For  soon  as  the  night  had 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  73 

fallen  certain  of  the  brethren  with  me  bore  the  body  of 
the  martyr  hither.  The  slab  which  thou  hast  read 
I  cut  out  even  with  mine  own  hand,  and  the  inscription 
thereon.  For,  lo  !  I  did  love  thy  mother  much  and 
tenderly." 

And  the  great  tears  welling  up  from  the  presbyter's 
soft  eyes,  and  his  broken,  sobbing  voice,  attested  the 
depth  and  deathlessness  of  that  great  love. 

"  I  have  told  thee  of  these  things  at  this  time,"  said 
the  presbyter,"  because  I  would  have  thee,  O  daughter 
of  martyrs,  cast  out  of  thy  sinless  heart  this  love  for 
the  proud  Roman  !  Arise,  my  child,  and  go  in  peace, 
and  may  the  peace  of  God  go  with  thee  !" 

Then  arose  Dorcas  meekly,  and,  bending  over  the 
presbyter,  kissed  she  his  forehead  with  mighty  tender 
ness  and  reverence  ;  and,  taking  up  her  lamp,  she  passed 
out  of  the  chapel,  seeking  the  more  hidden  recesses  of 
the  vast  necropolis  wherein  abode  the  holy  women. 

Then  the  presbyter  kneeled  down  and  struggled  woe 
fully  in  prayer,  and  at  last  the  sorrow  of  his  burdened 
heart  broke  forth  into  a  wail  of  limitless  anguish : 

"O  Lion  of  the  tribe  of  Judah,"  cried  he,  "give  me 
of  thy  strength  and  courage,  for  I  am  desolate  and  sore 
afflicted.  Thou  didst  call  the  mother  whom  I  loved 
unto  thyself  by  the  quick  way  of  martyrdom  ;  and  now 
the  daughter,  whom  I  have  carried  like  a  lamb  in  my 
bosom  all  these  lonely  years,  this  cruel  Roman  hath 
stolen  out  of  my  yearning  heart,  and  human  nature  in 
me  suffers  more  than  death !  Impart  to  me  thine  aid 
divine !" 


74  DORCAS, 

Long  wrestled  he  with  that  sore  grief,  but  peace  at 
last  fell  on  him — peace  that  passeth  all  understanding — 
peace  that  floweth  as  a  river  —and  rising  to  his  feet  once 
more,  his  grand  and  holy  face  less  lighted  by  the  little 
lamp  he  bore  than  by  the  radiance  that  beamed  forth 
from  his  pure,  exalted  soul,  the  presbyter  went  quietly 
and  gravely  on  his  way. 


CHAPTEK  VI. 

THE  SWADDLING-BANDS  OF  ANTI-CHRIST. 

IN  the  spring  of  the  year  312,  Coustantine,  who,  after 
his  father's  death,  had  heen  proclaimed  Emperor  by 
the  Koman  legions  then  in  Britain,  and  had,  after 
coming  into  Gaul,  received  the  homage  of  the  army  in 
that  country,  made  his  imperial  residence  and  army 
headquarters  at  Lutetia.  To  him  came  deputies  from 
Rome,  representing  that  the  people  of  Italy  were  se 
cretly  opposed  to  the  tyrant  Maxentius,  who  then  was 
Emperor  at  Rome,  and  beseeching  him  to  come  to 
Rome  and  free  them  from  that  despotism  by  assuming 
his  own  rightful  sovereignty  over  Italy. 

"  We  represent,  O  mighty  Constantino,  almost  every 
class  in  Italy,  and  by  far  the  greater  part  of  the  people, 
and  in  their  names  we  implore  thee  to  march  to  the  Im 
perial  City,  both  because  the  people  hate  Maxentius 
and  because  of  their  great  love  and  loyalty  to  thee." 

Constantine  the  Great,  then  in  the  bloom  and  fresh 
ness  of  his  manhood,  was  perhaps  the  handsomest  Ro 
man  that  ever  wore  the  purple,  and  also  the  most  astute 
politician  of  his  age ;  a  man  fitted  by  nature  for  the 
greatest  destiny ;  brave,  hardy,  temperate,  self-poised 

and  ambitious,  knowing  the  very  hearts  of  men. 

75 


76  DORCAS, 

To  these  delegates  he  replied  in  calm  and  dignified 
terms,  in  which  firmness  and  kindness  were  equally 
blended : 

"Patricians!  Senators!  the  message  which  ye  have 
brought,  perhaps  at  great  peril  to  your  own  safety,  is 
marvelously  gratifying  to  me,  that  desire  only  the 
glory  and  happiness  of  the  Romans.  Ye  are,  therefore, 
welcome,  both  because  of  your  own  love  and  loyalty, 
and  also  because  of  your  assurances  that  ye  utter  the 
suppressed  voice  of  Rome,  and  of  all  Italy ;  but  yet  I 
will  deal  with  you  candidly,  even  as  your  loyalty  de 
serves. 

"  To  march  upon  Rome  under  existing  circumstances 
would  be  only  to  bring  upon  beautiful  Italy  the  horrors 
of  a  civil  war,  and  so  harass  mine  own  people,  and  de 
stroy  mine  own  heritage.  This  I  desire  to  avoid  ;  this 
I  have  no  heart  to  do. 

"  The  love  and  loyalty  of  the  people  (which  you  so 
confidently  promise),  unorganized  and  undisciplined,  is 
not  a  force  that  can  avail,  either  to  avert  the  calamities 
of  war,  or  to  render  the  war  brief  and  decisive.  The 
information  I  desire,  ye  have  not  given  ;  and  that  which 
ye  have  brought,  although  agreeable  news  indeed,  is 
only  a  pleasing  sentiment,  and  not  a  living  and  avail 
able  force." 

"Most  royal  Augustus,"  said  the  spokesman  of  the 
delegates,  "  what  information  more  than  we  have  given 
does  thy  superior  wisdom  desire  ?" 

"  I  wish  to  be  advised  whether  there  is  any  one  class 
of  the  Roman  people,  having  common  hopes  and  inter- 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  77 

ests  enough  to  give  them  unity  and  coherence  of  purpose 
and  of  action,  and  organization  enough  to  understand 
and  to  work  in  unison  fora  common  end,  upon  whom  I 
can  rely,  with  good  hope,  that  when  the  power  of  Max- 
entius  is  once  overthrown  they  can  prevent  it  from  ral 
lying  again.  I  will  have  no  protracted  war  in  Italy  to 
waste  the  fairest  portion  of  mine  empire  and  distress 
my  loyal  people." 

"Alas!"  said  the  ambassador,  "beautiful  Italy  is 
rent  by  factions,  and  no  such  body  of  men  as  thou  de- 
sirest  can  anywhere  be  found.  All  those  who  care  more 
for  their  native  land  than  for  their  own  private  schemes 
for  selfish  advancement  or  revenge,  turn  their  eyes  to 
thee,  and  will  hail  thy  coming  with  gladness,  although 
they  know  that  the  only  road  to  peace  lies  through  the 
bloody  fields  of  civil  war." 

"Then,"  said  Constantine,  calmly  and  deliberately, 
"  ye  must  organize  such  a  body.  I  will  not  march  on 
Rome  until  ye  shall  have  done  so.  But  ye  must  accom 
plish  this  work  speedily,  or  I  will  seize  upon  the  only 
alternative  that  remains  to  me — a  measure  so  radical 
and  heroic  that  the  adoption  thereof  will  shake  the 
whole  fabric  of  the  empire  to  its  lowest  foundations. 
So  that  ye  must  return  and  organize  such  a  body  of  men 
as  I  have  designated,  and  give  me  sure  means  to  gain 
their  confidence  and  aid,  or  I  will — 

Constantine  did  not  then  complete  the  sentence,  but 
gazed  around  the  whole  circle  of  the  delegates  with  calm 
and  searching  eyes.  Then,  after  a  long  pause,  he  con 
tinued  :  "  Or  I  will  invite  the  slaves  to  join  my  stand- 


78  DORCAS, 

ard  and  supply  mine  army,  and  will  manumit  every  man 
who  does  so  with  alacrity — him,  and  his  family,  and 
their  descendants  forever." 

A  thrill  of  absolute  horror  passed  over  the  assembly 
at  this  proposal,  that  was  as  novel  as  it  was  daring. 

Thereupon  the  Emperor  enjoined  upon  them  to  set 
out  for  Rome  on  the  next  day,  and  proceed  immediately 
to  organize,  in  every  city,  town  and  hamlet,  a  body  of 
men  such  as  he  had  desired  ;  and  having  given  orders 
for  their  proper  entertainment,  he  dismissed  the  dele 
gates  with  royal  grace  and  dignity. 

These  delegates  at  once  perceived  that  Constantino 
thoroughly  comprehended  the  political  status  of  the 
empire,  and  had  determined  upon  the  course  he  would 
pursue.  The  broken  communications  which  they  were 
enabled  to  hold  with  each  other  while  upon  the  road  did 
not  enable  them  to  arrive  at  any  satisfactory  conclusion, 
and  they  finally  agreed  that  before  passing  the  confines 
of  Gaul,  beyond  which  it  would  be  necessary  for  them 
to  separate  and  take  different  routes  to  Rome,  in  order 
to  escape  the  notice  of  the  officers  of  Maxentius,  they 
would  meet  in  solemn  conclave,  and  devote  a  day  to  the 
discussion  of  the  momentous  duties  devolved  upon  them 
by  the  orders  of  Constantine ;  and  to  consider  the  fear 
ful  alternative  which  he  would  accept  if  they  should  dis 
regard  the  imperial  mandate. 

The  day  came  quickly,  and,  in  a  secluded  valley  at 
the  foot  of  the  Alps,  they  met  and  called  upon  the  old 
est  and  highest  of  their  number  to  preside  over  their 
deliberations  ;  and  upon  taking  his  station,  the  presi- 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  79 

dent  invited  every  one  to  speak  who  had  any  counsel  to 
offer  upon  the  matter  which  so  deeply  concerned  them 
and  the  Roman  State. 

During  several  hours,  one  after  another  rose,  and, 
little  by  little,  the  business  was  considered  in  every  pos 
sible  ramification ;  and  the  general  opinion  seemed  to 
be  settling  down  into  the  conclusion  that  it  was  impos 
sible  for  them,  or  any  others,  to  organize  such  a  body 
as  their  chosen  emperor  desired,  without  their  attempt 
to  do  so  coming  to  the  knowledge  of  Maxentius  ;  and 
that  the  coming  of  such  knowledge  to  the  ear  of  that 
cruel  tyrant  would  be  the  signal  for  death  and  confisca 
tion  unto  all  of  them  and  all  their  friends.  They  fur 
ther  thought  that  if  Constantino  should  dare  to  issue  a 
proclamation  of  freedom  to  the  slaves,  that  act  would 
consolidate  all  the  freemen  of  Italy  against  him,  and 
render  a  hopeful  cause  absolutely  hopeless  ;  and  that 
even  a  victory,  gained  by  means  so  desperate,  and  so 
contrary  to  all  the  law  and  sentiment  of  the  empire, 
would  be  worse  for  them  than  a  defeat.  That  the  de 
mand  of  the  Emperor  was  unreasonable,  his  alternative 
too  horrible  to  contemplate,  and  that  self-preservation 
would  require  them  to  withdraw  the  invitation  they 
had  given  him  to  march  upon  Rome,  and  endeavor  to 
make  their  peace  writh  Maxentius. 

This,  perhaps,  would  have  been  the  resolution  reached, 
but  before  a  vote  could  be  taken  upon  it  a  man  who  had 
hitherto  kept  silent,  and  who,  indeed,  was  unknown  to 
all  except  one  or  two  of  the  delegates,  rose  and  began  to 
address  them  in  tones  so  singularly  musical  and  per- 


80  DORCAS, 

suasive  that  from  the  very  beginning  of  his  remarks  all 
eyes  were  directed  toward  him,  and  all  ears  turned  to 
catch  his  words  ;  and  thus  he  spake  : 

"  Patricians  !  Senators  !  A  poor  scholar  of  Ctesarea, 
that  hath  never  mingled  in  any  public  affairs,  nor  hath 
held  office  under  the  empire— who,  indeed,  hath  only 
joined  himself  to  your  illustrious  company  by  the  par 
tiality  of  personal  friendship  in  one  of  your  number — 
would  not  be  presumptuous  enough  to  claim  your  atten 
tion  if  it  had  not  already  become  too  painfully  apparent 
that  the  wisdom  of  those  who  have  given  counsel  hath 
failed  to  point  out  any  reasonable  solution  of  the  diffi 
culties  that  seem  to  hem  us  in  on  every  side.  But,  while 
inferior  in  rank,  learning,  and  intelligence,  to  even  the 
least  among  you,  his  studious  life  hath  been  devoted  to 
learning  the  history  of  nations  and  of  men  ;  and,  for  a 
long  time  past,  it  hath  been  his  purpose  especially  to  in 
vestigate  and  understand  the  present  condition  of  the 
Roman  Empire.  I  am  myself  so  poor  as  not  to  despise 
the  poverty  of  others ;  so  obscure  as  to  feel  a  deep  and 
abiding  interest  in  even  the  humbler  class  of  citizens ; 
so  ignorant  as  to  be  willing  to  learn  of  all.  And,  there 
fore,  it  happens  that  sources  of  information  which  ye 
could  not  see  by  reason  of  your  elevation,  socially  and 
politically,  above  those  regions  of  human  life  in  which 
they  most  abound,  have  long  been  familiar  to  my  sight 
and  hearing. 

"Patricians  !  Senators  !  I  affirm,  from  long  and  care 
ful  observation,  that  there  exists  to-day  in  Eome,  and 
throughout  Italy,  a  body  of  men,  more  numerous  than 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  81 

any  one  faction  in  the  land,  not  inferior  to  any  other  in 
intelligence  and  virtue,  comprising  some  of  every  grade 
of  social  and  political  life,  but  chiefly  consisting  of  the 
lower  and  middle  classes,  all  bound  together  by  ties 
compared  with  which  the  military  oath  is  weaker  than 
a  rope  of  sand  ;  a  body  more  compactly  organized  than 
any  legion,  possessed  of  a  common  treasury,  possessed  of 
means  of  inter-communication  more  safe  and  speedy 
than  the  postal  service  of  the  empire  ;  a  body  of  men 
whom  ye  loathe  and  despise  only  because  ye  do  not  truly 
know  them — I  think,  only  because  ye  do  not  know 
them — in  fact,  a  secret  and  thoroughly -organized  society 
within  the  empire,  that  could,  if  it  would,  answer  the 
purposes  of  Constantine  more  perfectly  than  any  or 
ganization  ye  could  devise  by  years  of  open,  uninter 
rupted  toil.  Think  ye  it  would  be  a  work  worth  while 
to  seek  the  aid  of  this  wonderful  community  in  the  sore 
strait  to  which  ye  are  now  reduced  ?" 

Having  so  spoken  the  orator  sat  down,  and  imme 
diately  there  was  a  great  clamor,  some  crying,  "Who is 
he  ?  Who  is  the  orator  ?"  and  others,  "  Who  are  those 
men — the  strange  community  of  which  he  speaks  ?" 

But  the  speaker  sat  silent  and  apparently  unconscious 
of  the  tumult  which  his  words  had  caused,  until  the 
clamor  wore  itself  out,  and  the  president  courteously 
arose,  saying : 

"  The  assembled  delegates  desire  to  know  who  is  this 
able  and  learned  orator,  and  the  name  of  that  myste 
rious  community  to  which  he  hath  referred.  Will  the 
orator  be  kind  enough  to  answer  these  requests  ?" 


82  DORCAS, 

Then  rose  up  the  same  man  again,  and  in  a  quiet  and 
dignified  manner  responded  : 

"  I  am  the  poor  scholar  Eusebius,  of  Ca'sarea,  and  the 
community  of  which  I  spoke  is  the  Church  of  Jesus 
Christ — a  people  known  and  detested  by  the  name  of 
Christians." 

A  murmur  of  surprise,  almost  of  indignation  and  con 
tempt,  ran  through  the  whole  assembly,  and  it  seemed 
uncertain  how  this  information  would  be  received. 
Then  a  sour-faced,  tall  patrician  rose,  and  in  cynical 
tones  addressed  the  delegates: 

"  This  head  is  mine,  but  the  most  holy  Emperor  Max- 
entius  wants  it.  I  have  some  houses  in  Rome,  some 
villas  on  the  Arno,  some  estates  in  Spain,  and  the  em 
peror  wanteth  these  also.  If  he  take  oft'  this  head,  the 
rest  is  his  by  law.  Have  ye  also  some  heads  ?  some 
houses  ?  some  villas  ?  some  estates  ?  I  am  ready  to 
take  any  road  to  save  my  head  and  my  estates,  even  to 
setting  free  my  thousand  slaves  ;  but  slaves  are  property 
— Christians  are  not.  I  therefore  say,  better  the  Chris 
tians  than  the  slaves  !  All  that  I  know  of  this  myste 
rious  people  leads  me  to  give  entire  credence  to  the 
statement  ye  have  heard  as  to  the  numbers  and  orga 
nization  of  their  communities.  But  the  orator  hath 
said  that  they  could  give  the  Emperor  all  the  aid  he 
needs  if  they  would.  That  sounds  strange,  indeed  ! 
Surely  if  this  supposed  criminal  association,  that  hath 
been  pursued  and  punished  for  three  centuries,  were 
promised  protection  for  the  future,  they  ought  gladly  to 
promise,  and  to  give  their  aid,  their  very  lives,  if  need 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  83 

be,  to  the  Emperor  !  For  mine  own  part,  I  am  ready 
to  advocate  a  law  allowing  them  to  build  a  temple  on 
the  Capitoline  Hill,  and  raise  Christ's  statue  in  the 
Pantheon,  if  they  can  give  us  such  indispensable  assist 
ance.  Surely  a  god  the  more  or  less  in  Rome  is  a  mat 
ter  of  much  smaller  consequence  to  men  of  brains  than 
are  the  lives  and  property  of  all  of  us  and  thousands 
more,  who  hope  no  good  thing  of  Maxentius.  I  there 
fore  say  again  :  Better  the  Christians  than  the  slaves  !" 

And  this  remark  seemed  to  be  caught  as  a  keynote 
that  gave  direction  to  the  sentiment  of  all,  and  soon 
there  was  a  unanimous  cry  of:  "  Better  the  Christians 
than  the  slaves  !" 

Thereupon  many  expressed  a  desire  to  hear  Eusebius 
declare  his  opinion  as  to  how  and  upon  what  terms  the 
aid  of  the  Christians  might  be  secured,  and,  at  their  so 
licitation,  he  arose  once  more. 

"  Patricians  !  Senators  !  From  long  and  careful  study 
and  observation  of  the  Christian  community  (or,  rather 
communities,  for  each  congregation  seems  to  constitute 
an  independent  democracy),  I  am  of  opinion  that  it 
would  be  a  work  of  great  difficulty  and  delicacy  to  induce 
them  to  take  sides  with  the  emperor,  or  take  sides  at  all, 
in  the  impending  war ;  but  I  have  no  hesitation  in  saying 
that,  if  they  can  be  led  to  do  so,  the  overwhelming 
weight  of  their  numbers  and  influence  would  reduce  the 
whole  war  to  one  single  battle,  which  would,  of  course, 
be  necessary  to  destroy  the  army  of  the  Emperor  Max 
entius  ;  for,  if  defeated,  it  would  be  impossible  for  him 
to  raise  another  force.  The  difficulties  in  the  way  are 


84  DORCAS, 

very  great,  and  arise  out  of  the  fact  that  the  religion,  to 
which  they  cling  with  a  steadfast  and  immovable  te 
nacity  that  despises  tortures  and  death,  is,  in  some  re 
markable  particulars,  directly  in  conflict  with  the  laws 
and  customs  of  the  empire.  Christianity  is  a  pure, 
unmixed  democracy,  based  upon  faith.  This  religion 
absolutely  forbids  them  to  bear  arms,  and  their  history 
shows  that  during  three  hundred  years  no  body  of 
Christians  have  undertaken  to  defend  themselves 
against  even  the  grossest  injustice,  and  no  individual 
Christian  hath  ever  raised  a  weapon,  even  in  defense  of 
the  religion  for  which  he  would  not  hesitate  to  die. 
They  are  also  forbidden  by  their  religion  to  own  a 
slave  ;  and  from  this  fact  it  happens  that  the  number  of 
the  freemen  is  so  rapidly  increasing  everywhere.  The 
religion  also  forbids  them  to  acquire,  hold,  or  transmit, 
any  private  property  beyond  their  daily  bread,  and  they 
include  in  the  term  '  property  '  not  only  estates  real  and 
personal,  but  also  offices,  prerogatives  and  privileges  of 
birth  or  rank.  They  hold  their  property  in  common, 
and  regard  all  laws  which  recognize  private  rights  as 
Mammon-worship — the  most  wicked  and  abominable 
crime.  They  also  regard  marriage  as  a  sacrament  of 
religion,  and  consider  the  Roman  laws  of  divorce  as 
sinful  and  invalid.  The  whole  purpose  of  their  strange 
faith  and  practice  for  three  hundred  years  hath  been  to 
secure  the  absolute  fraternity  of  all  who  believe,  to  ab 
rogate  all  social  and  political  distinctions  between  man 
and  man,  and  between  different  classes  of  men,  making 
the  family  the  sole  basis,  and  the  church  the  sole  super- 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  85 

structure,  of  society.  To  a  community  organized  upon 
such  principles  as  these,  the  observance  of  which  is  se 
cured  beyond  the  reach  of  human  statutes  or  customs 
by  their  unwavering  faith  in  future  rewards  and  punish 
ments,  any  alliance  Avith  a  mighty  empire,  the  Avhole 
social  and  political  life  of  which  is  founded  upon  Avar, 
slavery,  imperialism,  aristocracy  and  property  rights, 
would,  at  first  blush,  seem  to  be  gross  and  unpardon 
able  sacrilege.  Yet,  by  cautious  management,  it  might 
be  arranged.  I  think  that  it  might  be  arranged ;  and  I 
would  pledge  my  life  that,  if  it  can  be  done,  the  Empe 
ror  Constantino  can  secure  all  the  aid,  in  men  and  in  re 
sources  of  every  kind,  that  he  can  possibly  require." 

After  some  further  discussion  and  inquiry,  it  Avas 
agreed  upon  that  some  of  them  should  return  at  once 
to  Lutetia  and  communicate  to  the  Emperor  the  facts 
imparted  by  Eusebius,  and  that  the  others  should  prose 
cute  their  journey  to  Rome,  and  open  up  communica 
tion  Avith  the  Christians  —  a  task  which  Eusebius 
undertook  to  facilitate,  saying  that  he  kneAV  some 
among  them  even  intimately  Avell,  and  had  such  access 
to  them  as  Avould  enable  him  to  maintain  constant  inter 
course  between  them  and  the  patricians  and  Senators 
Avho  desired  to  Avin  them  over  to  the  Emperor. 


CHAPTEK  VII. 

WHICH    SHOWETH     HOW    MARCELLTJS    CONDUCTED 
HIMSELF. 

WHEN  the  centurion  turned  away  from  Dorcas  and 
hurried  into  the  house,  he  had  no  misgiving  as  to  the 
wisdom  and  propriety  of  the  course  which  he  had  sworn 
to  pursue,  and  being  very  thoroughly  persuaded  in  his 
own  mind  that  not  only  his  own  wishes,  but  also  every 
dictate  of  reason,  of  humanity,  and  of  affectionate  re 
gard  for  the  beautiful  maiden,  required  him  to  snatch 
her  away,  by  force  if  need  be,  out  of  the  hands  of  the 
odious  and  malignant  Christians,  compel  her  to  sacrifice 
to  Venus,  and  so  place  her  beyond  the  reach  of  that 
atheistic  and  abominable  sect.  He  doubted  not  that 
this  was  the  wisest  and  best  course  for  both  of  them ; 
and  his  resolution  to  rescue  the  dear  and  beautiful  girl 
from  the  pernicious  influence  of  that  blighting  super 
stition  was  sustained  both  by  the  zeal  of  a  missionary 
and  by  the  passion  of  a  lover.  He,  therefore,  quickly 
prepared  the  poppy,  the  doves,  and  the  myrtle  and 
roses,  which  were  customarily  used  in  making  sacrifices 
to  the  foam-born  goddess,  and,  having  very  quickly  ar 
ranged  all  things  to  his  own  satisfaction,  he  hastened 
back  to  the  spot  at  which  he  had  left  Dorcas  but  a  few 
minutes  before,  and  was  overwhelmed  with  astonish 
ment  when  he  found  that  she  had  disappeared.  Then  he 


"  NAY,    NAY,    CENTURION,   THIS    CANNOT    BE.        FAREWELL, 
MARCELLUS.        THIS    CANNOT    BE."— p.    60. 

87 


88  DORCAS, 

called  her :  "Dorcas!  Dorcas!"  Called  more  loudly: 
"  Dorcas  !  Dorcas  !  Dorcas  !"  Called  with  might  and 
main;  "Dorcas!  Dorcas!  Dorcas!''  until  the  clear, 
powerful,  resonant  cry  rang  out  over  the  whole  villa,  and 
summoned  the  domestics  even  from  the  inmost  recesses 
of  the  house  ;  hut  still  no  answer  came.  Then  to  the 
thronging  slaves  whom  his  ringing  voice  had  speedily 
collected,  he  said  : 

"The  maiden  Dorcas,  whom  I  left  here  hut  a  few 
minutes  ago,  hath  strangely  disappeared.  Either  she 
hath  fled,  or  hath  been  abducted.  Haste,  all  ye,  in  dif 
ferent  directions,  and  seek  and  find  her  !" 

But  their  search  was  futile.  One  by  one,  until  far 
into  the  night,  weary  and  disheartened,  the  slaves  re 
turned,  and  as  they  severally  came  home,  the  young 
centurion  questioned  each,  and  elicited  every  fact  and 
conjecture  gathered  in  the  progress  of  the  search,  and 
then  dismissed  that  one  and  waited  impatiently  for 
another.  From  all  of  these  reports  together  the  unhappy 
youth  reached  the  conclusion  that  Dorcas  had  fled 
along  the  Appian  "Way  from  the  city  and  the  villa,  and 
that  pursuit  for  the  present  would  be  unavailing.  He 
doubted  not  that  she  had  gone  to  place  herself  under 
the  protection  of  some  secret  congregation  of  the  hated 
Christians ;  and  her  declaration  that  she  was  one  of 
that  strange  and  impious  sect  explained  to  him  her  ab 
sence  every  Seventh  Day,  a  fact  which  both  he  and 
Varus  had  accounted  for  by  their  belief  that  she  was 
accustomed  to  visit  some  synagogue  of  the  Jews. 

Hour  after  hour  the  restless  and  unhappy  youth 


THE  DAUGHTER   OF  FAUSTINA.  89 

strode  back  and  forth  along  the  gravel  walks  until  the 
dawn  came  stealing  up  the  east,  but  no  reflection  served 
to  quiet  him,  and  no  resolve  seemed  stable  and  reason 
able  enough  for  his  mind  to  fix  upon  it,  so  that  he  could 
not  determine  what  to  do.  The  sudden  breaking  off  of 
his  pleasant  association  with  Dorcas,  that  had  been  for 
months  the  chief  source  of  his  happiness,  was  worse 
than  death.  Only  when  he  knew  that  she  was  gone — 
perhaps  forever — did  he  fully  realize  how  tyrannous  a 
hold  his  love  for  her  had  taken  on  his  heart  and  brain. 
He  felt  that  if  she  had  died  beside  him  he  could  have 
endured  the  loss  of  her  better  that  way,  than  to  think 
of  her  still  living,  but  not  for  him ;  still  living,  but  be 
yond  his  reach  ;  still  living,  but  taught  and  trained  to 
hate  him  by  the  secret  and  dreaded  influence  of  the  ter 
rible  superstition  of  the  Christians — a  demonaic  creed 
that  outlawed  human  love,  and  hated  all  mankind  ! 

"She  would  be" mine  own  gladly  and  lovingly,"  he 
said,  "but  for  the  influence  of  that  fearful  and  inhuman 
creed." 

"There  is  none  like  her,"  he  sobbed  in  his  great  an 
guish.  "  There  is  none  like  her  ;  no,  not  one  !  I  can 
not  live  without  thee,  Dorcas  ;  or,  if  I  exist,  life  will  be 
so  lonely,  maimed,  and  wretched,  that  death  would  be  a 
welcome  refuge.  Come  back  to  me,  Dorcas ;  oh,  come 
back!" 

Then  fiercer  thoughts  would  seize  his  heart,  and  he 
would  vent  his  bitter  wrath  against  the  hated  Christians, 
"the  enemies  of  the  human  race,"  "a  cruel,  malevolent 
and  criminal  association,"  "  that  had  renounced  the  re- 


90  DORCAS, 

ligion  and  ceremonies  instituted  by  our  fathers,"  that 
"  had  abandoned  the  way  of  reason  and  of  nature,"  out 
lawing  the  divine  love  which  the  kind  and  gentle  gods 
of  Rome  had  planted  in  the  human  heart  to  compensate 
for  the  stings  of  adverse  fate  and  beautify  our  earthly 
life. 

A  thousand  impracticable  schemes  chased  each  other 
through  his  perturbed  spirit  and  yielded  no  satisfying 
result,  until,  outworn  with  anxiety  and  grief,  he  threw 
himself  upon  his  couch  and  for  several  hours  forgot  his 
wretchedness  in  sleep.  Refreshed  and  calmed  by  his 
brief  but  dreamless  slumber,  he  arose,  and  quietly  started 
oft'  on  foot  along  the  Appian  Way.  By  minute  and 
systematic,  yet  seemingly  careless,  inquiries  of  those 
whom  he  met  or  saw  in  the  adjacent  gardens,  orchards 
and  fields,  some  of  whom  had  often  seen  the  beautiful 
young  girl  tripping  along  the  road,  and  by  comparing 
the  information  thus  elicited  with  facts  already  within 
his  knowledge,  Marcellus  reached  two  very  definite  con 
clusions—first,  that  the  Seventh-day  journeys  habitually 
made  by  Dorcas  did  not  extend  be}rond  a  certain  ruin, 
because  beyond  that  point  no  one  remembered  to  have 
ever  seen  the  girl ;  that  at  this  point  the  young- 
girl  had  been  accustomed  to  leave  the  highway  in  the 
direction  of  a  range  of  hills  under  which  the  abandoned 
villa  had  been  situated,  because  upon  the  other  side  were 
cultivated  lands,  through  which  she  could  not  have 
gone  every  week  for  a  year  or  more  without  being  seen 
or  known.  This  was  not  much,  he  thought,  but  it  was 
something.  He  knew,  that  after  leaving  the  Appian 


THE  DAUGHTER   OF  FAUSTINA.  91 

Way,  Dorcas  must  have  plunged  at  once  into  that  tan 
gled  maze  of  underbrush,  brambles,  vines  running  wild 
upon  the  untrimmed  trees,  and  all  the  luxuriant  vege 
tation  which  in  that  semi-tropical  climate  soon  conceals 
the  harsher  features  of  ruin  and  decay.  This  much  his 
unflagging  search  had  yielded  him,  and  at  nightfall  he 
turned  his  footsteps  homeward,  resolved  that  upon  the 
following  morning  he  would  explore  the  waste,  and  that 
not  even  the  slightest  trace  by  which  it  might  be  pos 
sible  to  follow  Dorcas  should  escape  his  anxious  eyes. 

On  the  next  day,  and  the  next,  and  day  after  day  for 
more  than  a  month,  he  spent  in  that  solitude  every  hour 
that  he  could  spare  from  necessary  duties,  exploring  the 
grounds  foot  by  foot  until  he  could  recognize,  like  the 
faces  of  familiar  friends,  every  tree  and  vine  and  shrub, 
and  even  the  most  minute  and  indistinguishable  features 
of  the  earth  and  of  its  various  growths  ;  but  nothing 
came  of  it.  He  was  discouraged,  almost  hopeless,  but 
determined  never  to  relinquish  the  search  until  he  had 
discovered  Dorcas,  or  had  learned  whither  she  had  gone. 

The  youth  grew  thin  and  haggard  with  this  unremit 
ting  anxiety  and  grief.  His  looks  and  movements  be 
came  nervous — almost  jerky  ;  he  lost  the  calm,  self- 
poised  grace  and  dignity  which  characterizes  the  officers 
of  a  Roman  Legion,  and  the  men  of  action  of  every  race 
and  clime,  so  that  no  busy  dreamer,  whose  mind  wears 
out  his  body,  could  have  his  physical  beauty  more  greatly 
marred. 

The  Vice-Prefect  Varus  had  been  troubled  and  an 
noyed  beyond  measure  by  the  abrupt  disappearance  of 


92  DORCAS, 

his  beautiful  and  accomplished  assistant,  and  he  had 
elicited  from  the  young  centurion,  by  persistent  ques 
tioning,  nearly  all  that  had  occurred  between  himself 
and  Dorcas.  Of  course  he  condemned  the  maiden  as 
one  deluded  by  the  malevolent  superstition  of  the  Chris 
tians,  blinded  to  her  own  good  and  to  all  that  pertained 
thereto,  and  insensible  to  the  right  and  duties  which 
she  owed  to  himself  and  to  his  only  son,  and  his  bitter 
hatred  towards  that  odious  sect  grew  stronger  and  more 
unrelenting  as  he  daily  marked  the  havoc  which  disap 
pointment  was  making  in  the  health  and  spirits  of  his 
son.  lie  would  not  have  hesitated  to  set  the  whole 
police  force  of  the  city  upon  her  track,  nor,  if  she  had 
been  found,  would  he  have  hesitated  to  deliver  her  up, 
bound  hand  and  foot,  to  the  centurion ;  but  he  knew 
that  it  was  almost  useless,  in  any  case,  to  pursue  a 
Christian  who  had  fled  in  order  to  escape  the  vengeance 
of  the  Roman  laws,  it  being  well  established  by  his  own 
experience  and  by  the  traditions  and  official  records  of  his 
office  that  any  Christian  who  wanted  to  do  so  could  dis 
appear  as  effectually  as  if  the  earth  had  opened  and  had 
swallowed  him  up,  never  to  be  recaptured,  except  by 
merest  accident.  Those  who  believed  everything  at 
tributed  this  well-known  fact  to  witch-craft  and  "the 
strong  magic"  of  the  sect ;  those  who  believed  nothing 
accounted  for  it  by  the  conjecture  that  the  Christians 
had  a  perfect,  secret  organization  among  themselves, 
and  hiding  places  unknown  to,  and  undiscoverable  by, 
the  Roman  authorities.  Varus,  therefore,  thought  that 
it  would  be  not  only  a  waste  of  time,  but  also  a  great 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUST1NIA.  93 

annoyance,  involving  an  injurious  notoriety  for  the 
young  centurion,  to  institute  an  official  search  for  the 
missing  maiden.  In  this  opinion  Marcellus  fully  co 
incided  ;  but  he  would  not  abandon  either  the  hope  he 
cherished  of  some  day  finding  Dorcas  nor  the  ceaseless 
effort  he  was  making  for  that  purpose. 

In  vain  the  Vice-Prefect  brought  to  bear  upon  him 
all  the  wise  suggestions  of  his  own  philosophy  ;  in  vain 
he  contrived  to  engage  the  young  man  in  extra  military 
duties  and  ever-changing  amusements,  seeking  to  rouse 
his  interest  in  his  profession,  or  to  get  him  committed 
to  licentious  pleasures ;  nothing  could  wean  him  from 
his  love  for  Dorcas,  nor  from  his  determination  to  dis 
cover  her  again ;  and  the  Vice-Prefect,  finally  realizing 
the  fact  that  a  great,  strong,  earnest  nature  absorbed 
by  any  master  passion  soon  passes  beyond  the  reach  of 
all  philosophical  treatises,  and  calmly  sacrifices  even  its 
own  lusts,  ambitions  and  vanities,  left  the  young  man 
to  his  own  resources,  hoping  that  with  the  lapse  of  time, 
the  bou}rancy  of  youth  would  cure  him  of  a  seemingly 
fatal  passion. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 

JUSTICE    TO  A   CHRISTIAN    AFTER    THE    HIGH   ROMAN 
FASHION. 

HEART-SORE,  disconsolate,  indifferent  to  all  his  usual 
pleasures  and  pursuits,  the  young  centurion  was  one 
day  wandering  about  the  headquarters  of  the  Prefect  of 
the  city,  which  was  the  usual  place  for  the  administra 
tion  of  justice.  While  he  was  lounging  listlessly  about, 
seeking  some  way  "  to  kill  time,"  his  attention  was  en 
listed  by  hearing  the  Vice-Prefect  who  that  day  sat  for 
the  trial  of  criminals,  order  the  lictors  "  to  bring  forth 
the  Christian." 

He  followed  the  lictors  into  the  hall,  and  saw  them 
place  in  the  prisoner's  dock  the  Christian  who  had  just 
been  brought  up  for  examination ;  and  Marcellus  lis 
tened  to  the  proceedings,  because  he  had  nothing  else  to 
do  and  was  aweary  of  the  world. 

"  What  is  thy  name  ?"  asked  the  Vice-Prefect  of  the 
prisoner. 

"My  name  is  Lucanius." 

"Thine  age?" 

"  Forty  years." 

"  Thy  place  of  residence  ?" 

"  Near  Rome,  beyond  the  Tiber." 

"  Thine  occupation  ?" 

"  I  am  a  dresser  of  vines  and  a  gardener." 

94 


THE  DAUGHTER   OF  FAUSTINA.  95 

"  Thou  art  brought  before  me  charged  with  the  crime 
of  being  a  Christian.  Dost  thou  comprehend  the  na 
ture  of  the  accusation  ?" 

"  I  believe  I  do  so  fully." 

"Art  thou  guilty  or  not  guilty  ?" 

"  I  am  a  Christian,  but  am  not  guilty." 

"  Thou  art  accused  of  belonging  to  the  infamous  and 
pestilent  sect,  the  vile  and  criminal  association,  denomi 
nated  Christians ;  what  plea  dost  thou  make  for  thy 
self?" 

"Most  honorable  Roman,  I  do  not  know  of  any  vile 
or  criminal  association  whatever.  I  am  verily  a  Chris 
tian,  but  I  have  done  no  crime.  Is  there  any  such 
thing  as  murder,  robbery,  larceny,  lying,  cheating  or 
fraud,  or  any  immoral  or  unworthy  conduct,  charged 
against  me  by  any  one  ?  If  so,  I  plead  not  guilty.  I 
am  a  Christian,  but  have  violated  no  law  of  the  city  or 
of  the  empire  !" 

"Stretch  forth  thy  right  hand,"  said  the  Vice-Pre 
fect. 

Lucanius  did  so,  and  it  was  manifest  that  the  thumb 
of  his  right  hand  had  been  amputated. 

"  So,"  cried  the  officer,  "  thou  art  one  of  the  '  Thumb- 
less  !'  Where  is  thy  thumb  ?  Didst  thou  not  cut  off  thy 
thumb  in  order  to  avoid  military  service  due  to  the 
most  holy  emperor  (as  so  many  of  the  same  pusillanimous 
and  pernicious  sect  have  done)  V  And  yet  thou  sayest 
that  '  thou  has  violated  no  law  of  the  empire  !'  " 

"  Verily,"  answered  Lucanius,  "  I  did  amputate  this 
thumb  in  order  to  avoid  military  service ;  for  the  law  of 


96  DOE  CAS, 

Christ  cloth  not  suffer  a  Christian  to  bear  arms.  Biit 
the  Roman  law  does  not  require  a  thumbless  man  to 
bear  arms,  so  that  this  thing,  done  for  conscience'  sake 
long  years  ago,  is  not  a  violation  of  the  law." 

"  Art  thou  a  Roman,  and  yet  dost  not  know  that  the 
first  duty  of  a  Roman  is  to  bear  arms  in  behalf  of  his 
country  ?  Or  art  thou  a  coward  and  a  slave  thus  igno- 
miniously  to  maim  thyself?" 

"  There  was  no  law  forbidding  any  Roman  to  cut  off 
his  thumb  if  he  had  cause  to  do  so,  and  I  had  good  cause 
enough." 

"  I  asked  thee  art  thou  a  coward  ?  Art  thou  afraid  ?" 
said  the  Vice-Prefect  angrily. 

Then  said  the  Christian  mildly:  "Most  honorable 
Roman,  I  do  not  think  that  I  would  be  afraid  to  die,  but 
I  would  be  afraid  to  put  another  man  to  death.  '  Thou 
shalt  not  kill,'  is  the  law  of  God  ;  and  the  fact  that  an 
emperor,  or  some  other  man,  might  order  me  to  perpe 
trate  the  crime,  can  furnish  no  excuse  for  my  conscience. 
I  might  face  death,  perhaps,  as  quietly  as  other  men  do 
— for  personal  courage  is  the  lowest  and  commonest 
virtue  of  mankind,  if  it  be  a  virtue — but  I  would  not 
inflict  death  or  wounds  on  any  man  that  lives." 

"  So,  so !"  murmured  the  Vice-Prefect.  "  These  Chris 
tians  will  not  fight,  not  even  to  defend  themselves  against 
injustice  ;  not  even  in  defense  of  the  superstition  for 
which  they  do  not  fear  to  die  !" 

Then  in  a  louder  tone  he  continued  :  "  Dost  thou 
know  the  edict  of  the  most  holy  Emperor  Maxentius 
concerning:  the  odious  Christians  ?" 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  97 

"  Yea,"  said  Lucanius,  "  I  have  heard  the  law  !" 

"And  thou  knowest  that  the  law  requires  me  to  put 
thee  to  torture  until  thou  deny  this  Christ  and  burn  in 
cense  to  some  god  of  Rome  ;  or  until  thou  confess  the 
secret  purposes  and  designs  of  this  accursed  and  crimi 
nal  association,  which  have  hitherto  baffled  all  inquiry 
of  the  government ;  or  until  I  am  satisfied  that  thou  art 
hopelessly  obdurate  and  blinded  by  this  pernicious  su 
perstition." 

"Yea,"  answered  the  Christian  calmly,  "  such,  in 
deed,  do  I  suppose  to  be  thy  duty  and  thy  purpose  ;  nor 
do  I  blame  thee,  noble  Roman,  although  I  would  that 
the  law  were  not  so  cruel  and  unjust.  Let  me  solemnly 
declare  unto  thee  (as  I  suppose  others  have  often  done 
before)  that  the  only  reason  the  government  hath  always 
failed,  and  must  always  fail,  to  discover  any  secret, 
criminal  purpose  or  design  of  the  Christian  communi 
ties,  is  because  they  have  no  such  design  or  purpose. 
There  is  nothing  secret  in  Christianity,  except  that  so 
long  as  we  are  persecuted  by  the  law  we  hold  it  as  a 
matter  of  conscience  and  of  brotherly  love  not  to  betray 
the  brethren." 

"  I  have  heard  all  that  before,"  said  the  Vice-Prefect 
harshly.  "  Thou  knowest  the  law  ;  wilt  thou  now  curse 
this  Christ,  and  burn  incense  to  Jupiter,  without  the 
torture,  and  so  save  thyself  intolerable  pain  ?" 

"IN" ay  !"  said  Lucanius  quietly  ;  "  not  for  any  tortures 
that  thou  canst  inflict,  God  helping  me  !" 

"  Take  him,  lictors  1  "With  the  thumb-screws  crush 
ye  the  remaining  fingers  of  the  hand  which  he  hath 


98  DORCAS, 

mutilated,  one  after  the  other,  and  report  thou  to  mo 
his  behavior  !" 

Then  seized  they  him,  and  hurried  him  into  an  ad 
joining  chamber,  whence  soon  came  the  moanings  of 
intolerable  anguish  shuddering  through  the  hall.  Then 
the  man's  voice  was  heard,  exclaiming  : 

"  O  Jesus,  Saviour,  strengthen  me  !" 

Then  soon  afterward  came  in  the  lictors,  and  re 
ported  to  the  magistrate,  saying  : 

"  Vice-Prefect,  we  crushed  two  fingers,  and  then 
ordered  the  Christian  to  recant,  whereupon  he  began  to 
call  upon  Jesus  ;  and  then  we  crushed  the  two  remain 
ing  fingers,  and  the  man  endured  it  not,  but  fainted 
dead  away." 

"  Bring  him  hither  !"  said  the  Vice-Prefect. 

Then  they  brought  back  Lucanius,  and  already  he 
looked  weak  and  old  and  haggard.  Then  the  Vice- 
Prefect  fixed  his  eyes  upon  the  man,  and  said : 

"Thou  hast  tasted  of  the  thumb-screws,  Christian, 
and  thou  remainest  obstinate  ;  but  we  have  yet  the  rack, 
that  giveth  torture  compared  with  which  that  which 
thou  hath  suffered  is  but  child's  play.  Wilt  thou  recant 
or  not  ?"  Then  answered  Lucanius : 

"Most  honorable  Roman,  I  knew  not  whether  I  could 
endure  this  agony,  and  did  greatly  fear  that  the  fierce 
pain  might  force  me  to  dishonor  Christ ;  but  now  I 
know.  I  praise  God  that  hath  strengthened  me  to  suf 
fer  all  things  which  thou  thinkest  thy  duty  requireth 
thee  to  afflict  me  with.  Glory  be  to  the  Father,  and  to 
the  Son,  and  to  the  Holy  Ghost,  Ameu  I" 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  99 

"It  is  enough,"  said  the  magistrate  to  the  lictors. 
"This  kind  never  yield,  and  farther  question  would  be 
useless  cruelty.  Keep  ye  him  safely  until  sunrise  to 
morrow  ;  give  him  to  eat  and  drink,  and  in  the  morn 
ing  ye  shall  release  him  from  custody  without  moles 
tation. " 

Then  the  Christian  bowed  low  ,  saying: 

"  I  thank  thee  much,  for  thou  art  merciful,  and  hast 
not  pressed  thy  legal  authority  against  me  farther  than 
thy  duty  doth  require." 

"  Certainly  not,"  said  the  Vice-Prefect.  "  A  Roman 
officer  must  do  his  duty,  without  regard  to  any  personal 
feeling  of  favor  or  of  hatred.  Thou  hast  borne  thyself 
well,  and  thou  wouldst  be  a  worthy  man  if  once  set  free 
from  thine  abominable  superstition." 

Then  the  lictors  took  him  to  his  dungeon,  to  be  con 
fined  until  sunrise,  as  had  been  ordered. 

Then  said  the  Vice-Prefect : 

"  Bring  in  the  girl !" 

And  the  lictors  brought  before  him  Phoabe,  the  daugh 
ter  of  Lucanius,  "charged  with  the  crime  of  being  a 
Christian;"  and  the  maiden  being  placed  in  the  pri 
soner's  dock,  her  examination  proceeded  as  in  the  for 
mer  case,  eliciting  the  fact  that  she  was  a  Christian,  of 
the  age  of  twenty  years,  the  daughter  of  the  former 
prisoner. 

The  girl  was  a  thorough  Roman  in  every  feature,  and 
although  her  large  and  lustrous  eyes  betrayed  her  secret 
terror,  she  was  calm  and  self-possessed,  revealing  in  the 
patient  quiet  of  her  bearing  the  self-control  that  comes 


100  *  DORCAS, 

of  long-training  in  the  direction  of  repressing  all  out- 
word  signs  of  emotion. 

"Thou  art  young  and  comely,  girl,"  said  the  Vice- 
Prefect,  "  and  the  fact  that  no  indecorum  is  laid  to  thy 
charge  except  that  thou  hast  embraced  the  pestilent  and 
inhuman  superstition  of  the  Christians,  inclineth  me  to 
pity  thee  ;  but  thou  knowest  that  I  must  and  will  en 
force  the  law  against  thee,  unless  thou  come  hither  and 
upon  the  little  altar  there  burn  incense  to  the  goddess 
Venus,  denying  this  malignant  Christ.  Wilt  thou  not 
do  so,  maiden  ?" 

"  Nay,  verily !" 

"Dost  thou  know  the  law  concerning  the  Christian 
maidens  ?" 

"  I  do  not  I" 

"  From  the  days  of  the  Emperor  Nero  until  recently," 
said  the  Viee-Pre  feet,  "  those  women  who  confessed  their 
adherence  to  this  pernicious  sect  were  thrown  to  the  lions 
or  decapitated,  or  burned  at  the  stake.  But  this  ancient 
severity  hath  been  relaxed  by  the  more  recent  emperors, 
and,  under  the  most  holy  Emperor  Maxentius,  they  are, 
of  mercy,  no  longer  put  to  death.  The  law  sends  them 
not  ad  leonem,  but  ad  lenonem.^ 

"The  emperor  is  mistaken  in  regard  to  clemency," 
said  Phoebe,  "for  I,  and  every  Christian  girl,  would 
prefer  to  go  to  the  lions,  rather  than  endure  that  of 
which  thou  speakest." 

"But  the  law  is  more  merciful  unto  thee  than  is  thy 
malevolent  and  accursed  superstition.  I  will  give  thee 
until  sunset  to  consider  of  thy  condition.  If  by  that 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  101 

hour  thou  shalt  consent  to  curse  this  Christ  and  burn 
the  incense,  thou  mayst  go  hence  free ;  but  if  thou  re- 
mainest  obdurate,  the  law  shall  be  enforced,  whether 
thou  wilt  or  not.  Think  thou  well  upon  it.  Lictors, 
take  her  to  her  dungeon  !" 

Then  they  led  the  girl  into  one  of  the  dungeons  of  the 
place,  and  closed  and  shut  the  door  upon  her.  The 
small,  dark  room  contained  only  an  iron  couch,  a  chair, 
a  small  wooden  table,  on  which  there  was  a  water  jar  and 
an  earthen  mug.  The  girl  sank  down  upon  her  knees 
in  silent,  earnest  prayer. 

The  Vice-Prefect  remained  engaged  in  the  examina 
tion  of  other  prisoners.  lie  remarked  that  there  was 
never  any  necessity  for  witnesses  on  the  examination  of 
those  who  were  charged  with  the  crime  of  Christianity, 
if  the  charge  were  true,  because  in  all  his  experience  he 
had  never  known  one  of  them  to  deny  the  fact. 

Just  at  sunset  the  Vice-Prefect  ordered  a  lictor  to  in 
quire  whether,  after  reflection  upon  the  matter,  the  girl 
Phoebe  was  willing  to  save  herself  by  denying  Jesus  and 
burning  incense  to  the  idol.  The  lictor  reported  that 
she  quietly  but  obstinately  refused  to  do  either. 

"  Then  the  law  must  take  its  course,"  said  the  Vice- 
Prefect,"  and  the  young  girl  was  led  back  to  her 
dungeon  and  the  door  locked  upon  her.  But  Marcellus, 
obeying  a  sudden  impulse,  pressed  forward,  and,  salut 
ing  the  Vice-Prefect,  asked  that  he  might  be  permitted 
to  visit  the  Cbristian  maiden's  cell.  The  magistrate 
evinced  some  surprise  that  a  young  patrician  should 
make  such  a  request,  but  wrote  the  necessary  order  on 


102  DORCAS, 

a  papyrus  and  directed  a  lictor  to  conduct  the  cen 
turion  to  the  prison. 

And  Marcellus  went  out  following  the  lictor,  and 
when  they  had  reached  the  entrance  to  the  dungeon 
the  lictor  delivered  the  order  to  the  sentry  on  duty 
there,  and  thereupon  the  sentrjr  opened  the  door  and 
the  centurion  passed  into  the  dungeon,  and  the  door 
was  closed. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

A  FAIR   CONTRACT  FOR   A  PAGAN. 

WHEN  the  young  centurion  entered  the  cell  of  Phoebe, 
the  girl  instinctively  drew  away  to  that  side  of  the  room 
into  which  the  fast  fading  light  of  day  sifted  through  a 
small,  narrow  window  that  was  well  secured  by  trans 
verse  iron  bars  morticed  deeply  into  the  walls  of  solid 
stone.  Observing  the  growing  darkness  of  the  dungeon, 
Marcellus  rapped  on  the  heavy  door  with  his  sword- 
hilt,  and  when  the  sentry  answered,  he  said:  "Bring 
thou  a  lamp  hither;"  and  soon  the  sentry  opened  the 
door  and  gave  unto  him  a  small  lamp  lighted,  which  the 
centurion  placed  upon  the  table.  Then  laying  his 
sword  across  the  table,  he  seated  himself  upon  the  only  - 
chair,  and  turning  to  the  young  girl,  he  said,  in  harsh 
and  peremptory  tones:  "Come  thou  hither,  and  be 
seated  upon  this  couch  !  I  would  talk  with  thee,  and 
see  thy  face  when  thou  dost  answer  !" 

The  frightened  girl  hesitated  for  a  moment  to  obey 
him,  and  gazed  appealingly  into  the  young  man's  hag 
gard  but  determined  face.  "  Come  thou  hither,"  he 
said  again,  with  sterner  accents. 

Then,  preserving  her  self-possession  by  a  mighty 
effort,  she  calmly  came  forward  and  took  the  seat  upon 

the  couch  indicated  by  the  gesture  of  his  hand,  near 

103 


104  DORCAS, 

and  immediately  in  front  of  him,  with  the  lamp-light 
shining  full  upon  her.  The  centurion  turned  his  hag 
gard  face  and  gazed  into  her  timid  eyes  long  and  ear 
nestly,  with  a  look  as  cruel  and  hard  as  any  murderer's 
visage  ever  wore,  and  then,  in  tones  husky  with  some 
strong  but  suppressed  passion,  he  said:  k'Thou  art  a 
Christian,  and  thou  knowest  the  sentence  passed  upon 
thee  ;  but  I  would  know  more  of  the  accursed  and 
criminal  association  to  which  thou  dost  belong — and  1 
will  question  thec.  If  thou  dost  answer  mo  truthfully 
and  promptly,  without  any  equivocation  or  evasion,  I 
will  show  thee  respect  and  kindness  ;  if  thou  dost  lie  to 
me,  or  if  thou  dost  prevaricate,  or  if  thou  refuse  to 
answer,  or  if  thou  dost  seek  to  conceal  anything  of 
which  I  ask  thee,  I  will  in  no  way  stand  between  thee 
and  the  sentence  of  the  court.  Wilt  thou  be  truthful, 
direct,  and  without  deceit,  or  not  ?" 

His  hard  but  feverish  eyes  were  fixed  unblanchingly 
upon  those  of  the  shrinking  girl.  But  Phoebe  calmly 
answered  :  "  I  thank  God,  Roman,  this  night,  that 
there  is  no  act  of  all  my  life  that  needeth  to  be  con 
cealed.  There  is  nothing  in  the  faith  of  a  Christian 
but  what  all  men  are  invited  and  earnestly  exhorted  to 
know  and  examine  for  themselves.  Thou  canst  put  no 
question  to  me,  centurion,  which  I  need  hesitate  to 
answer  truthfully  and  unreservedly,  either  concerning 
my  own  poor  life,  if  thou  dost  wish  to  examine  that,  or 
concerning  our  pure,  peaceful,  harmless,  and  glorious 
religion,  except  that  I  will  not  betray  any  who  are 
known  to  me  to  be  Christians ;  nor  will  I  reveal  unto 


DORCAS    TUKXED    OFF   INTO    A   TANGLED    MAZE   OF   BKAMBLES, 
UNDERBKUSH  AND   TREES. — p.  65, 

105 


106  DORCAS, 

thee  any  sign  or  word  by  which  the  persecuted  recog 
nize  each  other.  Except  these  two  things,  ask  what 
thou  wilt,  and  I  will  answer  thee  truly,  directly,  and 
intelligently,  as  far  as  my  little  knowledge  may  serve 
me." 

"  Dost  thou  belong  to  any  organized  body,  or  society, 
among  the  Christians  ?" 

"  Yea, "  answered  Phcebe,  "and  have  done  so  from 
infancy.  I  was  raised  up  in  the  Church." 

"  Hast  thou  been  accustomed  to  take  part  in  the 
secret  rites  and  ceremonies  of  these  societies  ?" 

"Assuredly,"  answered  Phrebe  ;  "but  thou  must 
know  that  there  is  nothing  in  the  nature  of  secrecy  in 
our  Christianity.  On  the  contrary,  the  Church  would 
gladly  hold  all  its  services  in  the  light  of  day — publicly 
—if  the  Roman  law  allowed  it  ;  only,  while  the  per 
secution  continues,  we  are  compelled  to  worship  in 
secret." 

"What  are  your  rites  and  ceremonies?  What 
eidolons  or  images  do  ye  use  in  them  ?  What  do  the 
Christians  do  in  these  assemblies  ?" 

"  It  would  take  long  to  tell  thee  all  intelligibly.  The 
principal  ceremonies  are  Baptism,  administered  when 
one  unites  himself  with  one  of  our  communities  ;  the 
Supper  of  our  Lord,  consisting  of  a  taste  of  consecrated 
bread  and  wine,  used  commonly  once  a  week  ;  singing, 
prayer,  and  preaching,  in  which  the  presbyters  explain 
the  Sacred  Book,  or  exhort  men  to  the  observance  of 
the  precepts  therein  contained." 

"  I  know  something  of  all  these  things  of  which  thou 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  107 

hast  spoken,  from  hearing  or  reading  the  examinations 
of  other  Christians  ;  but  have  they  not  secret  rites, 
which  they  refuse  to  reveal,  even  to  save  themselves 
from  tortures  and  from  death  ?  Abominable  practices, 
which  shun  the  light  of  day,  and  which  they  are 
attestated  by  mighty  oaths  never  to  disclose  ?  Speak 
thou  the  truth  !"  he  said,  sternly  and  vehemently. 

"Nay,  verily,"  said  Phoebe  ;  "  but  whatsoever  things 
are  pure,  whatsoever  things  are  lovely,  whatsoever 
things  are  honorable,  and  whatsoever  things  are  of  good 
report,  we  seek  for  those  things  earnestly." 

"  What  is  the  real  object  of  these  societies  ?" 

"  To  preserve  and  disseminate  the  knowledge  of  one 
true  God,  and  of  His  Son,  our  Saviour  ;  to  encourage 
each  other  in  holy  living,  and  to  avoid  all  sin." 

"  What  form  of  oath  or  obligation  is  the  bond  of 
union  among  them  ?" 

"  There  is  no  oath  taken,  no  obligation  executed. 
One  who  is  admitted  into  a  church  giveth  all  that  he 
hath  for  the  common  good,  promises  to  lead  a  pure  and 
blameless  life,  and  to  love  the  brethren — that  is,  all  who 
are  Christians." 

"  What  dost  thou  suppose  to  be  the  chief  or  vital 
point  in  the  whole  system  ?" 

"Only  faith  in  Christ  as  a  Divine  Saviour,  and  the 
Agape  ;  that  love  for  all  men,  and  especially  for  the 
brethren,  for  which,  I  have  been  told,  you  Komans 
have  no  word  in  your  language.  " 

"What  is  Agape?" 

"I  hardly  know  how  to  tell  thee  that.     The  nearest 


108  DORCAS, 

word  is  charity,  and  that  giveth  but  a  portion  of  the 
meaning  ;  for  when  Paul,  who  also  was  a  prisoner  here 
at  Home  for  Christ's  sake,  seeketh  to  define  this  charity 
he  saith  :  '  Though  I  have  all  faith,  so  that  I  could 
remove  mountains,  and  have  not  charity,  I  am  nothing. 
And  though  I  bestow  all  my  goods  to  feed  the  poor,  and 
have  not  charity,  it  profiteth  me  nothing.  Charity 
suffereth  long,  and  is  kind ;  charity  envieth  not ; 
charity  vaunteth  not  itself;  is  not  puffed  up  ;  doth  not 
behave  itself  unseemly  ;  seeketh  not  her  own ;  is  not 
easily  provoked ;  thiuketh  no  evil ;  rejoiceth  not  in 
iniquity,  but  rejoiceth  in  the  truth ;  believeth  all 
things  ;  hopeth  all  things  ;  endureth  all  things  ;  charity 
never  faileth.  And  now  abideth  faith,  hope,  charity, 
these  three  ;  but  the  greatest  of  these  is  charity.'  Ah  ! 
Roman,  if  all  men  had  this  divine  charity  in  the  soul 
of  them,  no  man,  woman,  nor  child  need  ever  fear  to 
be  wronged  or  injured  by  any  one  ;  and  this  grace,  the 
issue  of  which  is  a  life,  pure,  harmless,  useful  and 
beautiful  here  and  eternal  life  in  the  world  to  come,  is 
that  for  which  all  Christians  seek." 

"  Thou  lookest  as  if  thou  didst  believe  in  the  verity 
of  that  which  thou  hast  spoken  !"  said  the  centurion. 

"Yea,"  answered  Phoebe;  "with  all  my  soul  and 
strength  do  I  believe,  and  would  to  God  that  thou,  and 
all  men  with  thee,  did  so  believe." 

Then  there  fell  a  long  silence  between  them.  The 
girl  quietly  watched  him,  hoping  and  praying  that 
some  holy  influence  might  soften  his  heart  toward  her 
self,  and  save  her  from  all  harm,  but  the  young  man 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  109 

sat  with  bowed  head,  and  strong,  inscrutable  counten 
ance  ;  submerged  in  troubled,  doubtful,  bitter  thoughts, 
until  he  seemed  almost  to  have  forgotten  the  presence 
of  his  prisoner  and  all  their  gloomy  surroundings. 
Finally  he  roused  himself  by  a  visible  effort,  and  fixing 
his  eyes  once  more  upon  the  young  girl's  face,  he  said, 
in  sudden,  imperative  tones  :  "Knowest  thou  the  Jew, 
Epaphras  ?" 

Instantly  the  girl's  face,  that  had  begun  to  glow  with 
enthusiasm  while  she  recited  the  glorious  hymn  of 
Paul  in  praise  of  charity,  and  that  has  remained  bright 
and  hopeful  ever  since,  was  clouded  with  a  shadow  of 
trouble,  but  almost  as  quickly  it  resumed  its  usual  ex 
pression  of  self-possession,  and  after  a  momentary 
hesitation  she  replied  :  "  I  do  know  an  Epaphras,  who 
is  an  Israelite  by  birth,  but  whether  he  be  the  same  of 
whom  thou  speakest  I  know  not." 

"Yea,"  said  Marcellus,  with  hard,  bitter  sarcasm; 
"an  Israelite  by  birth;  a  Christian  by  religion;  a 
learned  man,  too  ;  perhaps,  a  teacher  or  a  bishop  of 
the  sect — dost  thou  not  know  him  ?" 

"  First  inform  me  why  thou  askest  concerning  him  ?" 

"I  perceive  that  thou  dost  know  the  man,"  said 
Marcellus.  "  I  do  not ;  but  know  that  he  is  an  educated 
man,  and,  notwithstanding  that,  a  Christian.  I  seek 
not  to  injure  him,  but  only  to  be  certain  whether  thou 
knowest  the  man." 

"Yea,"  said  Phoebe  ;  "  I  do  know  him,  Roman  ;  a 
great,  good  and  useful  man,  and  a  Christian.  What 
wouldst  thou  have  of  him  ?" 


110  DORCAS, 

"Nothing,  replied  Marcellus.  "  But  dost  thou  know 
that  Dorcas,  the  daughter  of  Faustina,  of  whom  this 
same  Epaphras  hath  been  guardian,  teacher  and 
friend?" 

"  I  have  never  seen  the  maiden,"  answered  Phoebe, 
"but  have  often  heard  of  her;  for  she  is  an  orphan, 
both  of  whose  parents  suffered  martydom  for  Jesus, 
and  all  the  churches  love  and  honor  her." 

The  angry  light  once  more  blazed  in  the  young  man's 
feverish  eyes,  and  he  demanded  harshly  :  "  How  is  it 
that  thou  knowest  Epaphras  and  not  Dorcas  ?  The 
guardian  and  not  the  ward  ?" 

"Simply  from  the  fact  that  Epaphras  hath  sometimes 
held  services  for  our  community,  but  I  was  never  at  his 
chapel,  nor  hath  Dorcas,  so  far  as  I  am  informed,  ever 
attended  ours  ;  therefore,  I  have  never  met  with  her." 

"  That,  indeed,  seemeth  plausible  enough,"  Marcellus 
said ;  "  but  thou  couklst  find  her  for  me,  couldst  thou 
not?" 

"  Yea,  verily,"  said  Phoebe.  "  I  could  communicate 
with  Epaphras  through  our  own  pastor,  and  so  easily 
find  the  maiden  Dorcas." 

"Then,  if  thou  wilt  swear  in  good  faith  that  thou 
wilt  find  and  bring  her  unto  me,  thou  shalt  go  hence 
unharmed,  and  1  will  henceforth  stand  for  a  friend 
whose  protection  thou  and  thy  father  may  safely  claim. 
I  will  gratify  any  reasonable  wish  of  thine  if  thou  shalt 
deliver  unto  me  the  maiden  Dorcas." 

"Why  dost  thou  so  earnestly  seek  after  Dorcas  ?" 

"That  is  mine  own  affair,"  he   answered,  angrily, 


THE  DAUGHTER   OF  FAUSTINA.  Ill 

"and  cannot  in  anywise  concern  thee.  Thou  shalt  be 
safe,  I  tell  thee,  and  thou  and  thy  father  shall  enjoy  my 
protection,  if  thou  wilt  discover  the  girl  and  give  her 
up  to  me.  If  not,  remember  to  what  thou  art  con 
demned  ;  and  the  hours  are  passing  rapidly." 

The  girl  blanched  with  fear  and  sorrow,  but  she  an 
swered  boldly  :  "  Koman,  thou  canst  not  name  a  reward 
for  which  I  would  betray  my  sister  Dorcas  unto  thee  !" 

"Thy  sister!"  said  Marcellus,  furiously.  "Even 
now  thou  hast  declared  to  me  that  thou  didst  not  even 
know  the  girl." 

"Yea,"  answered  Phoebe,  quietly;  nor  do  I  know 
her,  even  by  the  sight ;  but  she,  also,  is  a  Christian, 
and  all  Christian  girls  are  sisters  to  each  other.  That  is 
the  Agape.  I  would  not  betray  her  to  secure  my  life, 
nor  for  any  price  that  thou  couldst  offer,  if  thou  didst 
own  the  empire." 

"  I  do  not  ask  thee  to  betray  the  girl.  I  would  not 
injure  her  ;  but  I  want  her  !  Canst  thou  not  see  that 
I  am  miserable  because  she  hath  forsaken  me  ?"  Canst 
thou  not  see  that  I  suffer  because  I  see  her  face  and 
hear  her  voice  no  more  ?  Dioscuri  !"  he  shouted, 
fiercely;  "but  thou  shalt  seek  and  find  her  for  me' 
Dost  thou  hear  ?  I  say  thou  shalt  1" 

"  Never  !"  she  answered,  quietly,  "  unless  thou  first 
inform  me  why  thou  dost  so  passionately  desire  to  find 
her,  and  I  then,  knowing  all,  shall  believe  that  it  is 
right  to  aid  thee  ;  for  if  it  seemeth  wrong  to  me,  I  will 
not  aid  thee,  Roman." 

The  young  man  gazed  upon  her  fiercely  and  fixedly, 


112  DORCAS, 

and  saw  that  it  would  be  useless  to  attempt  to  compel 
that  seemingly  calm  and  immovable  being  to  aid  him, 
or  even  to  promise  to  do  so.  "Thou  art  like  unto  all 
that  cherish  the  accursed  superstition  !"  he  cried,  with 
fearful  bitterness  of  spirit.  "  Calm,  immovable,  im 
placable,  indifferent  to  the  joys  and  sorrows  of  all  men  ! 
Enemies  of  the  human  race  !  Scorning  reward  or  pun 
ishment  alike !  Alive  only  to  the  terrible  bondage 
which  this  fatal  superstition  fastens  upon  the  heart  and 
brain.  Thou  darest  even  to  scorn  my  very  sorrow,  and 
it  would  be  a  crime  to  pity  one  so  pitiless  as  thou  !" 

He  sprang  up  and  roughly  seized  the  girl  by  the  arm  ; 
but,  although  terrified  and  almost  despairing,  she  said, 
with  seeming  calmness  :  "If  thou  dost  suffer  from  any 
cause,  believe  me  that  I  would  rejoice  to  find  it  possible 
for  me  to  aid  thee.  Wilt  thou  not  tell  me  all,  so  that  I 
may  understand  what  may  be  the  right,  and  do  for  thee 
all  that  duty  may  permit  ?" 

The  girl's  strange  calmness,  in  such  striking  contrast  to 
his  own  tempestuous  passion,  seemed  greatly  to  soothe 
his  violence,  and  he  released  her,  saying:  "Perhaps 
thou  art  right.  Sit  thou  there,  and  I  will  tell  thee  all." 

Then  hurriedly,  and  with  feverish  voice  and  eyes,  he 
said  :  "  Dorcas  was  at  the  villa  of  my  father,  the  Vice- 
Prefect  Varus,  for  more  than  a  year.  She  is  the  love 
liest  and  the  most  gifted  girl  in  all  the  world,  and  I  love 
her  more  than  I  love  my  life.  Suddenly,  about  a  month 
ago,  she  disappeared — went  away  of  her  own  accord — 
and  she  must  be  concealed  somewhere  among  the 
Christians.  I  cannot  live  without  her  ;  thou  must  find 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.          113 

her  for  me ;"  and  then,  with  almost  intolerable  .sup 
plication  in  his  voice,  he  added  :  "  Thou  wilt  find  her 
for  me,  wilt  thou  not  ?" 

"  Didst  thou  tell  Dorcas  of  thy  love  for  her  ?" 

"  Yea,  and  that  made  her  fly  from  me, "  he  answered, 
sadly. 

"And  wouldst  thou  seek  to  compel  her  to  return  to 
thee,  knowing  that  she  loves  thee  not  ?" 

"Dioscuri!"  he  half  shouted;  "but  Dorcas  loveth 
only  me.  She  did  tell  me  that  with  all  solemnity,  and 
from  her  face  and  manner  I  do  know  she  spoke  the 
truth.  And  yet  she  hath  forsaken  me,  nor  have  I  seen 
nor  heard  of  her  since  then." 

"  Didst  thou  ask  her  to  become  thy  wife  ?" 

"Kay,  I  think  not.  A  wife  is  but  a  higher  sort  of 
slave.  In  Rome  we  do  not  marry  for  love,  but  for  in 
terest  or  convenience.  I  do  not  suppose  it  occurred  to 
me  to  talk  of  marriage  ;  but  if  she  would  only  be  my 
wife,  I  would  be  a  happy  man." 

"Perhaps  thou  hast  made  a  large  mistake,  centurion. 
"We  Christian  maidens  marry  only  when  we  love,  and 
love  only  when  we  marry.  Our  church  saith  :  '  Be  ye 
not  unequally  yoked  together  with  unbelievers  ;'  but  if 
thou  hadst  desired  Dorcas  in  marriage,  she  might  not 
have  left  thee.  Of  course,  I  do  not  know." 

"  Only  find  her  for  me,"  said  the  young  man  ;  "  only 
find  her !" 

"I  will  do  this  much  for  thee,"  said  Phoebe.  "If 
thou  wilt  suffer  me  to  go  hence  unharmed,  I  will  obtain 
speech  of  Dorcas,  as  thou  knowest  I  can  easily  do, 


114  DORCAS, 

through  Epaphras  and  our  presbyters,  and  will  on  the 
next  Sabbath — that  is,  the  fourth  day  from  now — meet 
thee  wherever  thou  mayest  appoint  a  place,  and  will 
bring  unto  thee  any  message  or  letter  which  Dorcas 
may  desire  to  send.  If  she  refuse  to  write  to  thee,  or 
to  send  thee  any  word,  I  will  nevertheless  come  unto 
thee  again  and  inform  thee  exactly  how  my  undertak 
ing  in  thy  business  hath  resulted.  More  than  this  I 
cannot  promise  thee  to  do." 

"Dost  thou  say  this  in  good  faith,  without  equivoca 
tion  or  lying  ?" 

"Christians  never  lie,"  she  answered,  proudly. 
"  Hast  thou  known  of  any  Christian  that  did  ever  lie 
even  to  escape  the  rigor  of  the  Koman  laws  ?" 

"Nay,"  answered  Marcellus,  "  and  I  will  even  trust 
thy  word.  If  thou  shalt  prove  to  be  true  and  faithful, 
I  will,  henceforth,  protect  thee  even  if  thou  shouldst 
accomplish  nothing.  Only  do  all  that  thou  canst  do  to 
aid  me  and  thou  shalt  be  safe." 

Then  the  girl's  dark,  luminous  eyes  grew  soft,  and  she 
took  the  centurion's  hand  in  hers,  and  bending  low,  did 
kiss  his  hand,  saying  :  "  Thou  art  a  man  just  and  mer 
ciful  according  to  thy  light  and  knowledge.  Surely,  I 
think  if  the  maiden  Dorcas  would  be  wife  to  any  Ro 
man  who  is  not  a  Christian  she  would  marry  thee." 

Then  the  young  man  spread  his  toga  on  the  iron 
couch,  saying  to  her,  kindly:  "Thou  must  be  weary, 
Phoebe.  Repose  thou  here  and  have  no  fear.  The  couch 
is  iron,  it  is  true,  but  it  is  smooth  and  thou  wilt  find  it 
not  uncomfortable.  It  is  necessary  that  I,  too,  remain 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  115 

until  the  sun  shall  rise,  and  thou  shalt  then  depart.  On 
the  evening  of  the  fourth  day  hence  come  thou  to  the 
villa  of  the  Vice-Prefect  Varus  on  the  Appian  Way, 
according  to  thy  promise,  fearing  nothing." 

The  girl  stretched  herself  out  upon  the  prison  couch, 
without  any  sense  of  doubt  or  fear,  and  soon  the  sorrows 
of  that  long  and  weary  day  were  lost  to  her  in  calm  and 
healthful  slumber.  But  the  young  man  sat  motionless, 
his  elbow  upon  the  table,  his  head  upon  his  hand,  and 
his  sore  heart  overburdened  with  sleepless  thoughts. 
He  thought  of  Dorcas,  and  all  that  he  had  ever  heard, 
and  all  that  he  had  personally  observed  concerning  the 
mysterious  Christian  Association  to  which  she  belonged, 
passed  with  the  tide  of  conflicting  emotions  through  his 
restless  heart.  What  was  he  to  think  of  this  Christian 
community  ?  There  was  a  hopeless  and  irreconcilable 
antagonism  between  what  he  had  heard  of  the  Christ 
ians  and  what  he  had  seen  for  himself.  It  was  neces 
sary  to  reject  one  or  the  other  view  of  the  hated  sect ; 
the  difference  between  the  two  accounts  of  them  could 
never  be  harmonized  ;  there  was  no  possibility  of  holding 
to  the  possible  verity  of  both  views.  He  knew  that  for 
centuries  the  Imperial  Edicts — the  very  highest  and 
most  authoritative  form  of  Koman  law — issued  for  the 
suppression  of  Christianity,  assumed  the  facts  to  be 
that  it  was  a  secret  association  of  the  depraved,  vile  and 
criminal — inhuman  and  pestilent,  atheistic,  licentious 
and  cruel.  He  knew  that  even  the  grave,  erudite,  and 
laconic  Tacitus,  Rome's  greatest  historian,  had  de 
scribed  the  Christians  in  terms  of  calmest,  unmitigated 


116  DORCAS, 

scorn  and  loathing,  and  had  not  censured  the  terrible 
cruelties  inflicted  upon  them,  even  by  Nero,  whom  he 
hated.  He  knew  that  the  popular  sentiment  of  Rome, 
and,  in  fact,  of  the  Empire,  held  the  Christians  in  utter 
abhorrence,  and  commonly  attributed  to  them  as  rites 
and  ceremonies  of  their  religion — crimes  so  utterly  abomi 
nable,  that  pagan  religion  refused  the  promise  of  pardon 
to  the  perpetrators  of  such  loathsome  atrocities  upon 
any  terms  whatever,  and  pagan  philosophy  did  not  pre 
tend  to  know  or  seek  for  any  expiation  for  such  guilt. 
But,  personally,  he  knew  that  many  of  those  who  had 
been  subjected  to  torture  because  of  this  religion,  were 
firm,  unyielding,  meek,  quiet,  patient  and  forgiving ; 
praying  even  for  their  judges  and  executioners.  He 
knew  that  only  in  rare  instances  had  any  crime  been 
charged  against  them,  except  the  crime  of  being  Chris 
tians,  and  in  no  instance  had  such  crime  been  proved. 
The  only  pure,  chaste,  educated  girls  he  had  ever  met 
with  were  both  Christians,  neither  of  them  ascetics — 
both  full  of  human  kindliness  and  sympathy — but  both  as 
fixed  and  changeless  as  the  everlasting  hills  in  their  de 
votion  to  this  terrible  superstition,  and  in  their  adher- 
ance  to  that  manner  of  life  which  seemed  in  some  way 
to  be  the  natural  and  logical  outcome  of  their  faith. 
One  view  must  be  true  to  the  exclusion  of  the  others  ; 
there  was  no  neutral  ground  between  them  upon  which 
they  could  both  stand  together.  If  judged  by  what 
Roman  law,  and  history,  and  opinions  declared  to  be 
the  truth  concerning  them,  no  association  on  earth  had 
ever  been  so  hopelessly,  desperately  and  determinedly 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  117 

wicked.  Judged  only  by  what  he  personally  knew,  no 
society  was  ever  so  pure,  exalted,  self-sacrificing  and 
perfect.  He  could  not  decide  for  himself  how  the  truth 
was  ;  and  hour  after  hour  he  pondered  the  subject  with 
out  reaching  any  satisfactory  conclusion.  Fearing  that 
even  the  outward  appearance  of  temperance,  veracity, 
meekness  and  constancy  which  had  so  powerfully  im 
pressed  him  upon  many  occasions,  might  be — as  it  was 
commonly  said  to  be — only  a  mask  behind  which  Chris 
tianity  concealed  from  the  outraged  and  insulted  world 
an  atheistic,  beastly  and  abominable  wickedness.  And 
so,  while  the  young  girl  slept  calmly  and  peacefully,  the 
Roman's  heart  was  like  the  troubled  sea  that  cannot 
rest ;  and  so  the  night  passed  slowly  away,  until  the 
slant  rays  of  the  rising  sun  struck  on  the  narrow  dun 
geon  window.  Then  Phoabe  awoke,  and  her  friendly 
salutation  being  returned  by  the  centurion,  he  rapped 
upon  the  door  with  his  sword-hilt,  and  the  sentry  came 
and  opened  it. 

"  Say  thou  nothing  to  any  one,"  Marcellus  told  her, 
"but  quietly  follow  me." 

And  quickly  they  passed  through  to  the  outer  door 
of  the  prison,  and  there  met  with  Lucanius,  and  father 
and  daughter  joyfully  embraced  each  other,  and  so  they 
departed  from  that  cruel  place.  And  the  centurion 
passed  them  by,  saying  to  the  girl,  in  low,  emphatic 
tones:  "  Keep  thou  thy  promises  faithfully." 

To  whom  she  answered,  without  pausing  on  her  way  : 
"  Yea,  Roman  !  Doubt  not  thou  at  all !" 

And  as  they  went  slowly  on  their  way  to  their  plea- 


118  DORCAS, 

sant  home  beyond  the  Tiber,  the  young  girl  noticed  that 
her  father's  hand  was  wrapped  up  in  linen  cloths  ;  and 
she  said  unto  him  :  "  Father,  what  hath  hurt  thy  hand  ?" 
and  her  heart  grew  sick  within  her  as  she  waited 
for  his  answer  :  "  The  Lord  hath  tried  me,  daughter, 
but  not  beyond  what  I  was  able,  for  His  sake,  to  bear. 
In  fact,  when  they  had  crushed  my  fingers  in  the  cruel 
engines,  it  seemed  to  me  that  all  at  once  I  did  receive 
great  strength  from  Him  that  helpeth  ;  and  I  do  believe 
that  no  tortures  could  ever  have  been  sufficient  to  force 
me  to  deny  the  faith.  Not  only  is  one  strengthened  of 
the  Lord,  but  I  think  also  that  suffering,  to  some  ex 
tent,  defeats  the  purposes  for  which  it  is  inflicted,  and 
that  there  is  a  point  beyond  which  it  ceases  to  be 
torture." 

"  I  glory  at  thy  constancy  !"  she  answered.  "The 
Master  hath  dealt  most  kindly  with  me.  The  young 
Roman  whom  thou  didst  hear  warning  me  to  keep  a 
promise  which  I  made  to  him,  seeketh  to  find  Dorcas, 
the  Daughter  of  Faustina,  and  I  did  promise  to  bring 
news  of  her  to  him.  Jle  loved  her  with  a  strong,  con 
trolling  passion  ;  and,  I  think,  will  see  that  no  injury 
shall  henceforth  befall  us  by  the  Roman  law ;  and  tie 
hath  been  good  to  me  and  kind. ' ' 


CHAPTER  X. 

"HE   THAT   SEEKETH   F1NDETH." 

ALTHOUGH  Marcellus  derived  some  hope  and  conso 
lation  from  the  apparent  sincerity  with  which  Phoebe 
had  promised  to  aid  him  in  learning  the  whereabouts  of 
Dorcas,  and  in  communicating  with  her,  he  did  not 
relax  his  efforts  to  discover  some  possible  path  by  which 
she  had  been  accustomed  to  pass  from  the  Appian 
Way,  in  the  vicinity  of  the  ruined  villa,  unto  that  un 
known  place  to  which  he  was  satisfied  she  had  gone  on 
every  Seventh  day  during  the  period  in  which  she  had 
been  resident  at  the  villa  of  Yarns.  So  deeprooted 
and  inveterate  was  the  distrust  and  hatred  with  which 
the  Romans  of  his  rank  regarded  Christianity,  and  all 
those  who  professed  it,  that  while  he  had  resolved  to 
trust  the  promise;  of  Phoebe,  he  found  it  really  impossi 
ble  to  give  more  than  a  painful  and  unsatisfactory  half- 
confidence  to  her,  and  in  this  uncertain  state  of  mind, 
being  compelled  to  wait  at  least  until  the  afternoon  of 
the  next  Seventh  day  before  he  would  certainly  know 
whether  she  intended  to  deal  sincerely  with  him ;  he 
could  not  rest  supinely  in  the  interval,  but  found  it 
necessary  to  keep  up  his  almost  daily  visits  to  the 
ruined  villa,  and  his  unavailing  search  for  the  path 

Dorcas  had  been  accustomed  to  follow  in  that  vicinity. 

119 


120 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  121 

Accordingly,  on  the  following  Sunday  morning,  long 
before  the  sun  had  risen,  Marcellus  hastened  along  the 
Appian  Way  toward  the  desolated  villa — a  vicinity  that 
for  more  than  a  month  he  had  haunted  like  some  rest 
less  ghost.  While  he  was  was  wandering  in  that  dreary 
waste,  rendered  almost  oblivious  to  his  surroundings  by 
the  one  consuming  sorrow  and  yearning  of  his  heart, 
his  attention  was  caught  by  the  form  of  an  old  woman, 
tramping  slowly  and  painfully  through  the  tangled 
thicket,  in  which  there  was  no  visible  path.  He  va 
cantly  wondered  what  she  could  be  doing  there  at  such 
an  early  hour,  and  noticed  that  she  did  not  seem 
to  wander  aimlessly  about  in  the  vagabond  fashion 
that  had  become  so  familiar  to  his  own  experience, 
but  pursued  her  slow  and  difficult  way,  as  if  she 
knew  where  she  was  going,  and  as  if  she  had  some 
definite  end  in  view.  The  young  man  kept  his  eyes 
upon  her,  followed  her  cautiously,  and  gradually  drew 
nearer  to  her  until  she  was  seventy-five  yards  distant 
from  him,  when  suddenly  she  disappeared,  he  could 
not  imagine  how  or  whither.  "  Gone  like  a  witch!" 
he  said  to  himself;  but  he  could  clearly  distinguish 
the  very  spot  on  which  she  was  standing  when  she 
had  vanished ;  and,  keeping  his  eye  fixed  upon  that 
spot,  and  moved  by  an  almost  powerless  hope,  he 
cautiously,  but  swiftly  stepped  forward,  and  found  only 
what  seemed  to  be  a  sheet  of  plaster  on  the  hillside,  that 
looked  as  if  it  might  once  have  formed  part  of  a  cistern 
or  cellar  long  since  destroyed.  That  was  all.  But 
when  he  came  immediately  to  this  fragment  of  a  ruined. 


122  DORCAS, 

wall  he  perceived  that  the  next  step  to  the  left  would 
lead,  not  as  he  supposed,  into  the  thicket  that  spread 
around  on  every  side,  but  through  a  narrow  opening, 
half-hidden  by  brambles  and  underbrush,  into  the  side 
of  the  hill.  It  was  dark  as  midnight,  and  he  knew 
neither  the  depth  nor  direction  of  the  cavern,  but 
with  that  fine  capacity  for  instantaneous  decision  and 
action,  which  is  one  of  the  surest  results  of  thorough 
military  training,  he  stepped  lightly  and  quickly  into 
that  subterranean  darkness.  But,  in  a  moment,  he 
stood  still  with  surprise.  A  narrow  line  of  artificial 
light  caught  his  eye,  and,  gazing  intently,  he  saw  that, 
a  few  feet  away  from  him,  the  old  woman  whom  he  had 
seen  outside,  held  in  her  hand  a  diminutive  lamp,  and 
that  by  its  feeble  flame  she  was  endeavoring  to  light 
the  wick  of  another  lamp  of  ordinary  size.  And  as 
soon  as  her  trembling  hands  enabled  her  to  do  so,  she 
hid  away  the  smaller  lamp,  and  bearing  the  other  in 
her  hand  proceeded  on  her  way.  The  light  gave  suffi 
cient  illumination  to  reveal  to  Marcellus  the  fact  that 
she  was  going  through  a  long  gallery  cut  out  of  the 
rock,  of  the  length  of  which  he  could  not  conjecture  ; 
but  instantly  he  determined  to  follow  the  woman 
cautiously  wherever  she  might  go,  and  see  what  would 
come  of  it. 

The  old  woman  pursued  her  way  along  the  smooth 
floor  of  the  gallery  with  greater  alacrity,  and  the 
young  centurion  followed  her  cautiously  through  ever}- 
bend  and  winding  of  the  path.  He  soon  became  satis 
fied  that  she  was  too  deaf  to  hear  his  footsteps,  and 


Tim  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  123 

that  the  only  danger  he  incurred  of  being  discov 
ered  by  her  lay  in  the  probablity  that  she  might  sud 
denly  turn  around  and  see  him  ;  and  there  seemed  no 
probability  of  this  occurrence,  because,  having  the 
light  in  her  hand,  she  would  be  looking  away  from  it 
and  into  the  darkness.  He  therefore  followed  close 
upon  her  heels,  determined  not  to  lose  sight  of  her 
again.  She  went  on  a  great  distance,  and  suddenly  she 
paused  a  moment  where  another  gallery  opened  into 
that  in  which  she  walked.  Then  came  a  voice  that 
cried  in  loud,  distinct  tones:  "  Walk  thou  by  faith  ?" 
and  the  woman  answered  with  the  words  :  "  In  His 
name,"  and  entered  into  the  new  gallery.  No  one  was 
anywhere  visible,  nor  could  Marcellus  determine  whence 
came  this  singular  challenge  ;  for  he  understood  at 
once  that  it  was  a  challenge  as  much  as  the  password 
of  a  Koman  encampment.  But  as  he  bore  no  lamp, 
and  followed  the  old  woman  so  closely,  he  rightly  sup 
posed  that  the  invisible  sentry  would  take  it  for  granted 
that  she  was  his  guide  through  the  labyrinth,  and  so 
kept  on  his  way  without  pausing,  and  was  not  chal 
lenged.  Whenever  she  came  to  a  new  gallery  into 
which  she  desired  to  go,  the  woman  paused,  and  the 
same  challenge  was  given:  "Walk  thou  by  faith?" 
and  the  same  answer  given,  "  In  His  name  ;"  and  at 
last  she  entered  the  same  chapel  in  the  rock  into  which 
we  have  already  followed  Dorcas. 

The  room  was  filled  with  men,  women  and  children, 
and  was  fairly  lighted  by  a  multitude  of  lamps  set 
in  niches  cut  into  the  wall  on  every  side.  Marcellus 


124  DORCAS, 

paused  before  he  had  reached  the  entrance,  and  squeezed 
himself  close  against  the  more  shaded  side  of  the  gallery, 
and  contemplated  the  strange  and  quiet  scene  before 
him. 

On  the  larger  table  lay  a  thing,  covered  over  with  a 
long  cloak,  the  outlines  of  which  resembled  those  of  the 
human  form.  On  the  smaller  table  was  a  snowy  linen 
cloth  that  concealed  something,  the  shape  of  which  the 
young  centurion  could  not  divine ;  but  his  glance  fell 
upon  it  almost  suspiciously,  because  he  understood  at 
once  that  he  had  come  upon  one  of  those  secret  chapels 
in  which  the  hated  Christians  were  wont  to  meet  in 
order  to  celebrate  the  fearful  rites  of  their  abomin 
able  and  inhuman  superstition.  He  knew  well  that  it 
had  long  been  reported,  and  generally  believed,  at 
Rome,  "  that  the  Christians,  as  the  most  wicked  of 
human  kind,  practiced,  in  their  dark  recesses,  every 
abomination  that  a  depraved  fancy  could  suggest,  and 
solicited  the  favor  of  their  unknown  God  by  the  sacrifice 
of  every  moral  virtue. "  He  knew  "  that  many  who  pre 
tended  to  confess,  or  to  relate  the  ceremonies  of  this 
abhorred  society,  had  asserted  that  human  sacrifices 
were  among  the  least  of  the  horrible  barbarities  prac 
ticed  among  the  mystic  symbols  of  initiation  ;  that 
proselytes  were  unknowingly  led  to  inflict  many  a 
secret  and  mortal  wound  on  the  innocent  victim  of  their 
errors  ;  that  as  soon  as  the  cruel  deeds  were  perpetrated, 
the  sectaries  drank  the  blood,  and  pledged  themselves 
to  eternal  secrecy  by  a  mutual  consciousness  of  guilt." 
It  was  as  confidently  affirmed  that  this  inhuman  sacri- 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  125 

fice  was  succeeded  by  a  suitable  entertainment,  marked 
by  orgies  to  which  those  of  profligate  Home  were  in 
nocent  in  comparison. 

He  had  never  really  believed  all  of  the  atrocious 
calumnies  commonly  circulated  concerning  the  Chris 
tians,  and  since  he  had  known  that  a  being  so  chaste 
and  refined  as  Dorcas  belonged  to  the  sect,  he  had  come 
to  believe  that  nearly  all  of  these  malicious  reports  were 
false  ;  yet  he  felt  a  thrill  of  horrible  curiosity  in  look 
ing  upon  that  snowy  cloth,  so  carefully  disposed,  which 
concealed  from  view  he  knew  not  what. 

The  young  man  gazed  eagerly  over  the  assembly 
— perhaps  four  hundred  in  number — seeking  to  dis 
cover  whether  Dorcas  was  present,  but  as  the  gallery 
in  which  he  stood  was  on  the  west  side  of  the  chapel, 
while  all  the  congregation  faced  the  east,  he  could  not 
tell  whether  she  was  among  those  over  whom  his  range 
of  vision  extended  or  not.  He  determined,  at  any  haz 
ard,  to  remain  quiet,  and  await  such  developments  as 
might  occur.  Knowing,  at  any  rate,  that  he  would 
have  the  opportunity  to  see  and  hear  for  himself  just 
what  the  Christians  do  and  say  in  one  of  those  secret 
assemblies  which  inspired  the  ordinary  Roman  with 
loathing  and  with  horror  ;  and  what  he  saw  and  heard 
was  as  follows  :  A  man  of  about  forty-eight,  possi 
bly  fifty,  years  of  age,  tall,  erect,  swarthy,  handsome, 
of  a  grave  and  dignified  demeanor,  stepped  upon 
the  low  platform  at  the  east  side  of  the  chapel,  and, 
facing  the  audience,  raised  his  right  hand  up,  and  im 
mediately  every  one  of  the  assembly  quietly  rose,  and, 


126  DORCAS, 

with  uplifted  hand,  in  solemn  tones  followed  the  Pres 
byter,  saying  :  "  I  believe  in  God  the  Father  Almighty, 
and  in  Jesus  Christ  His  only  Son,  our  Lord  ;  who  was 
conceived  of  the  Holy  Ghost ;  born  of  the  Virgin  Mary  ; 
suffered  under  Pontius  Pilate  ;  crucified,  dead,  and 
buried  !  On  the  third  day  He  rose  from  the  dead, 
ascended  into  heaven  ;  and  sitteth  on  the  right  hand  of 
God  the  Father  Almighty  ;  whence  He  shall  come  to 
judge  the  quick  and  the  dead.  I  "believe  in  the  Holy 
Ghost ;  in  the  common  Church  ;  in  the  communion  of 
Believers  ;  the  forgiveness  of  Sins  ;  the  resurrection  of 
the  Dead  ;  and  the  life  everlasting.  Amen  !" 

Marcellus  heard  this  profession  of  faith  with  profound 
interest  and  astonishment.  Because  the  Christians 
refused  to  worship  any  of  the  gods  of  Rome,  the  general 
belief  among  the  pagans  was  that  they  were  atheists, 
who  had  no  God  at  all ;  but  having  listened  to  their 
own  solemn  declaration  that  they  believed  in  God  the 
Father,  and  in  Christ  His  Son,  it  occurred  to  him  that 
if  the  Holy  Ghost  was  a  Divine  Being  also,  they  could 
not  be  atheists,  but  had  faith  in  these  three  Gods  at 
least ;  and  he  gazed  carefully  around  to  see  whether  the 
chapel  contained  any  idol,  eikon,  or  image,  to  represent 
these  Deities  ;  but  there  was  none  whatever. 

Then  the  whole  audience  united  in  singing  to  a  sweet 
and  solemn  melody  the  following  words  : 

"  Lord,  as  the  lamp-light  guides  our  feet 

Thro'  all  this  dark  but  dear  retreat, 

So  let  Thy  true  light  mark  the  road 

That  leads  our  willing  hearts  to  God, 

And  blessedness,  and  peace  ! 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  127 

"  As  here,  so  far  beneath  the  ground, 
But  for  our  lamps  a  gloom  profound, 
Would  darken  all  with  fear  and  doubt ; 
So  would  our  hearts  be  dark  without 
The  light  of  love  and  faith. 

"  But  for  our  lamps  fierce  beasts  would  come 
And  make  this  safe  retreat  their  home  ; 
So  would  fierce  lusts  and  passions  rise 
To  vex  our  spirits  with  their  lies — 

But  for  the  light  of  faith  and  love. 

"  Lord,  as  Thy  people  here  abide 
Hidden  from  earthly  hate  and  pride  ; 
So  may  Thy  Spirit  teach  each  heart 
To  live  a  holy  life  apart, 

Hidden  with  Christ  in  God  !" 

Marcellus  heard  the  sweet  voice  of  Dorcas,  dwelling 
lovingly  upon  the  words  of  that  chaste  and  simple  song, 
and  began  to  think  that  it  was  only  the  ignorance  of 
vindictive  hatred  that  could  associate  the  idea  of  crime 
or  impurity  with  a  worship  so  free  from  any  exhibition 
of  passion  or  pride.  But  there  were  yet  greater  sur 
prises  awaiting  him. 

The  presbyter  kneeled  down,  saying  :  "  Let  us  pray," 
the  whole  assembly  repeating  the  prayer  with  him  : 

"  Our  Father,  which  art  in  Heaven  ;  hallowed  be  Thy 
name  ;  Thy  kingdom  come  ;  Thy  will  be  done  on  earth 
as  in  Heaven ;  give  us  daily  bread  sufficient  for  our 
daily  use  ;  and  forgive  us  our  debts  as  we  also  forgive 
our  debtors  ;  and  may  we  not  be  led  into  trial ;  but 
deliver  us  from  trouble  ;  for  Thine  is  the  kingdom  and 
the  power,  and  the  doctrine,  forever.  Amen." 

And  then  the  presbyter  alone  said  :  u  Almighty  God, 


128  DORCAS, 

who  hast  given  us  grace  at  this  time,  with  one  accord, 
to  make  our  common  supplications  unto  Thee  ;  and 
dost  promise  that  when  two  or  three  are  gathered 
together  in  Thy  name,  Thou  wilt  grant  their  requests  ; 
fullfil  now.  O,  Lord,  the  desire  and  petitions  of  Thy 
servants,  as  may  he  most  expedient  for  them  ;  granting 
us  in  this  world  knowledge  of  Thy  truth,  and  in  the 
world  to  come,  life  everlasting." 

And  the  people  said  :   "  Amen  !" 

Then  the  presbyter  alone  continued  in  prayer,  say 
ing  :  "  Most  gracious  God,  in  whose  hands  are  the 
destinies  of  all  nations,  and  of  every  man,  we  humbly 
beseech  Thee  to  bless  Thy  servant,  Maxentius,  the 
Emperor  of  Home,  and  all  others  in  authority  ;  open 
his  eyes  to  Thy  truth,  that  he  may  escape  Thy  right 
eous  judgment  by  due  repentance  ;  that  he  may  cease 
to  vex  Thy  people  ;  and  so  order  his  government  that 
peace  and  happiness,  truth  and  justice,  religion  and 
piety,  may  be  established  among  us  for  all  generations  ; 
and  that  we,  Thy  servants,  being  hurt  by  no  persecu 
tions,  may  evermore  give  thanks  unto  Thee  in  Thy 
holy  Church,  through  Jesus  Christ,  our  Lord." 

And  all  the  people  answered  "  Amen." 

And  the  presbyter,  stretching  forth  his  hands  over 
the  people,  said :  "  The  grace  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ,  and  the  love  of  God,  and  the  fellowship  of  the 
Holy  Ghost,  be  with  us  all  evermore.  Amen  !" 

Then  said*  the  centurion  to  himself:  "They  even 
invoke  the  blessing  of  their  God  upon  the  Emperor 
Maxentius,  who  persecuted  them  to  the  death." 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  129 

Then  the  presbyter  said  :  "  Ye  that  do  truly  and 
earnestly  repent  of  all  sins,  and  are  in  love  and  charity 
with  all  your  neighbors,  and  are  leading  holy  lives,  fol 
lowing  the  commandments  of  God,  and  walking  in  His 
holy  ways,  draw  near  with  faith,  and  take  this  Holy 
Sacrament  to  your  comfort,  giving  most  humble  and 
hearty  thanks  to  God  the  Father,  Son,  and  Holy  Ghost, 
for  the  redemption  of  the  world  by  the  death  and  pas 
sion  of  our  Saviour  Christ,  who  did  humble  Himself 
even  to  the  death  upon  the  cross,  that  He  might  make 
us  the  children  of  God,  and  exalt  us  unto  everlasting 
life,  enabling  us,  even  in  this  present  world,  to  put  our 
whole  trust  and  confidence  in  His  divine  mercy,  and  to 
serve  Him  in  holiness  and  pureness  of  living,  the  fruits 
of  which  are  love,  joy,  and  peace,  and  the  end  of  which 
is  life  eternal." 

Then,  as  many  as  could  do  so  kneeled  round  the 
table,  and  the  presbyter,  removing  that  linen  cloth 
which  had  excited  the  curiosity  of  Marcellus,  uncovered 
a  flagon  of  wine,  a  small  cup,  and  a  plate  full  of  un 
leavened  bread.  Thereof  he  gave  each  one  to  eat, 
saying :  "  The  body  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  which 
He  gave  for  you,  preserve  your  soul  and  body  unto 
everlasting  life." 

Likewise,  taking  the  cup  of  wine,  he  gave  unto  each 
of  them,  saying :  "  The  blood  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ,  which  He  shed  for  you,  preserve  your  souls  and 
bodies  unto  everlasting  life." 

And,  when  they  had  partaken,  he  said  :  "Arise  ye, 
and  go  in  peace,  and  the  peace  of  God  be  with  you." 


130  DORCAS, 

Then  the  whole  assembly  rose  and  united  in  chanting 
the  following  words  :  "  Glory  be  to  God  on  high,  and 
peace  on  earth  amongst  good  men.  We  praise  Thee  ! 
we  bless  Thee  !  we  worship  Thee  !  we  give  thanks  unto 
Thee,  O  Lord  God  and  everlasting  King  !" 

Then  the  presbyter  stepped  to  the  longer  table  and 
removed  the  cloak,  uncovering  the  corpse  of  a  man. 
The  head  had  been  stricken  off,  but  was  carefully  placed 
in  its  proper  position.  Then  the  presbyter,  resuming 
his  place  upon  the  platform,  spake  as  follows:  "Be 
loved,  ye  know  that  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  unstopped 
the  ears  of  the  deaf,  restored  sight  to  the  blind,  raised 
the  dead,  and  did  many  other  wonderful  works,  in  order 
that  men  might  believe.  Ye  know  that  Christ  com 
mitted  thaumaturgical  power  to  His  Apostles,  and, 
through  them,  unto  the  common  church,  which  power 
hath  been  continuously  exercised  unto  this  day,  whereof 
all  ye  are  witnesses.  Ye  know,  also,  that  by  far  the 
greater  part  of  those  Christians  who,  from  the  be 
ginning,  have  suffered  martyrdom,  did  rejoice  to  be 
counted  worthy  so  to  suffer  for  the  faith  of  Christ,  and 
refused  to  accept  deliverance,  and  did  not  desire  the 
Anastasis.  But  this  man,  whom  ye  all  know,  having 
been  condemned  on  yesterday  to  die  because  4ie  fol 
lowed  Jesus,  did  earnestly  desire  the  Anastasis  for  the 
sake  of  his  motherless  children  and  for  the  sake  of  the 
work  which  he  might  yet  accomplish  for  the  Lord,  and 
sent,  by  certain  of  the  brethren,  to  beseech  the  church 
that  ye  would  pray  God  to  raise  him  from  the  dead. 
Therefore,  I  desire  ye  all  once  more  to  unite  in  prayer, 


THE  DAUGHTER    OF  FAUSTINA.  131 

in  faith  doubting  nothing,  that,  if  it  be  the  will  of  God, 
our  brother  Charis  may  abide  with  us  yet  longer  for 
the  accomplishment  of  the  holy  purposes  which  he  had 
in  his  heart  when  the  pagans  slew  him." 

And  the  presbyter  kneeled  down,  and  all  the  people 
with  him,  and  the  presbyter  said:  "Almighty  God, 
Father  of  all  mercies,  that  by  Thy  Son,  our  Saviour 
Jesus  Christ,  didst  create  all  worlds,  and  all  their 
natural  laws,  by  which  the  order  and  harmony  of  the 
universe  subsisteth,  to  whom  all  things  are  possible, 
we,  Thy  faithful  servants,  beseech  Thee,  if  it  be  in 
accordance  with  Thy  holy  will,  to  recall  this  our 
brother  back  to  earthly  life,  for  Thine  own  glory,  and 
for  the  sake  of  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord.  Amen."' 

And  all  the  people  said  "  Amen  !"  and  the  presbyter 
came  up  to  the  longer  table,  and  to  the  corpse  thereon, 
and  took  it  by  the  hands,  saying  :  "  Brother,  if  it  be 
the  will  of  God  concerning  thee,  in  the  name  of  Jesus 
Christ  our  Lord,  arise  and  live." 

And  the  man  got  up,  first  into  a  sitting  posture  upon 
the  table,  and  thence  upon  his  feet  on  the  floor,  saying : 
"  Praise  the  Lord,  O  my  soul,  that  hath  granted  our 
desire,  and  hath  renewed  my  life." 

And  the  people  praised  God  with  him.  And  then  he 
inquired  for  his  children,  and,  having  found  them,  he 
greeted  them  affectionately  and  went  on  rejoicing. 

The  lloman  rubbed  his  eyes,  to  assure  himself  that 
he  was  not  in  a  dream,  but  the  Christians  took  the  fact 
as  if  it  were  to  them  a  pleasant  but  not  uncommon 
event. 


CHAPTER  XT. 

WIIEX  Lucanius  and  Phoebe  reached  their  home 
beyond  the  Tiber,  after  the  young  girl  had  been  re 
leased  from  the  prison,  many  of  the  Christians  who  had 
heard  the  fact  that  they  had  been  seized  and  carried 
into  the  city  assembled  to  give  expression  to  sympathy 
for  their  suffering;5,  rejoicings  for  their  happy  escape, 
and  reverence  for  Lucanius,  who  was  thenceforth  num 
bered  among  the  "Confessors,"  as  they  were  called, 
who,  because  of  their  devotion  to  Christianity,  had 
endured  torture,  but  had  escaped  martyrdom.  Among 
these  friends  was  Doscius,  presbyter  of  the  community 
of  which  both  father  and  daughter  were  members,  who 
warmly  commended  the  quiet  faithfulness  evinced  by 
Lucanius  in  the  trial  which  he  had  undergone. 

Phoebe  said  unto  Doscius  :  "  Knowest  thou  where  the 
Presbyter  Epaphras  may  be  found  ?  or  knowest  thou 
the  way  unto  his  chapel  ?" 

And  Doscius  answered  :  "  Yea  ;  his  chapel  is  in  the 
catacombs,  upon  the  other  side  of  Rome,  a  long  distance 
out  on  the  Appian  Way." 

';I  desire  much  to  obtain  speech  of  Dorcas,  the 
daughter  of  Faustina,  who  is  ward  to  Epaphras,  if 

thou  canst  direct  me  to  his  chapel." 

132 


THE  DAUGHTER    OF  FAUSTINA.  133 

"  If  thou  wilt  go  beyond  the  Tomb  of  the  Scipios, 
along  the  Appian  "Way,  not  far  beyond,  thou  wilt  find 
a  vineyard  and  a  cottage  built  of  sun-dried  bricks,  upon 
the  left  hand  of  the  highway.  There  dwelleth  an  ancient 
man  whose  name  is  Gregorius,  and  if  thou  wilt  tell  him 
that  thou  art  a  Christian,  he  will  guide  thee  unto  the 
chapel  of  Epaphras. ' ' 

On  the  afternoon  of  Saturday,  Phoebe,  accompanied 
by  her  father,  crossed  the  Tiber  at  the  Bridge  of  Fabri- 
cus,  and  passing  by  the  Temples  of  Fortune  and  Vesta, 
the  Circus  Maximus  and  the  Tarpeian  Hock,  entered 
upon  the  Appian  Way,  which  they  followed  through 
the  valley  that  winds  along  the  base  of  Mount  Aven- 
tine  and  Celinus,  to  a  point  some  distance  beyond  that 
indicated  by  Doscius,  and  soon  found  the  cottage  he  had 
described,  and  the  aged  Gregorius,  to  whom,  by  certain 
signs  usual  among  them,  they  made  themselves  known 
as  Christians  ;  and  Gregorius  cheerfully  undertook  to 
guide  them  to  the  chapel  of  Epaphras.  Lucanius  there 
upon  returned  to  his  own  home,  and  Phoebe  followed 
the  ancient  a  long  distance,  and,  finally,  by  one  of  the 
many  secret  entrances  to  the  catacombs,  descended  into 
the  mysterious  recesses,  where  Gregorius  soon  found 
and  lighted  two  small  lamps,  one  of  which  he  gave  to 
Phrebe  ;  and  they  thereupon  took  their  way  through 
the  long  subterranean  galleries.  After  several  turns 
and  windings  had  been  passed,  they  heard  the  voice  of 
an  unseen  sentinel  crying  out :  "Walk  ye  by  faith  ?"  to 
which  Gregorius  at  once  replied  :  "In  His  name  !" 
Then  pausing,  the  old  man  said:  "This  maiden  is  a 


134 


THE  DAUGHTER    OF  FAUSTINA.  135 

Christian  who  seeketh  Dorcas,  the  daughter  of  Faus 
tina.  Knowest  thou  where  she  may  be  found?" 

"I  know  not,"  said  the  sentinel,  "but  the  women 
who  have  charge  of  our  chapel  can  tell  you." 

"  How  shall  the  maiden  reach  their  abode  ?"  said 
Gregorius.  * 

"  Let  her  follow  this  gallery,  and  take  every  one  that 
openeth  into  it  from  the  left.  At  the  fourth  opening 
she  will  find  guides." 

"  Art  thou  afraid  to  go  alone  ?"  asked  Gregorius. 

"iNay ;"  replied  Phoebe,  "for  there  can  be  none  but 
Christians  in  the  catacombs." 

"  Then  fare  thee  well,  daughter,"  said  the  ancient. 

"Many  thanks  for  thy  kindness,"  said  Phoebe,  "and 
farewell." 

And  then,  bearing  her  little  lamp  carefully,  the  3roung 
•girl  proceeded  upon  her  solitary  way.  It  was  a  strange 
sort  of  confidence,  indeed.  Far  underground,  in  more 
than  midnight  darkness,  fenced  in  upon  either  side  by 
long  lines  of  the  nameless  and  countless  dead  who 
slept  in  that  vast  necropolis — alone,  bearing  a  flickering 
lamp  that  lighted  the  gloomy  path  only  a  few  feet  in 
advance,  the  young  girl  quietly  went  on  without  the 
sense  of  fear,  because  she  knew  that  there  were  none 
but  Chi-istians  in  that  dreary  labyrinth— a  glorious  com 
mentary  upon  the  character  of  the  faith  which  she 
professed. 

Phoebe  went  forward,  taking  every  left  hand  opening 
in  the  way,  until  she  had  entered  three  of  them,  and  as 
she  drew  nigh  the  fourth,  a  broad  glare  of  light  shone 


136  DORCAS, 

across  her  path,  and  looking  before  her  she  saw  that  in 
one  direction  the  gallery  seemed  to  expand  to  greater 
width,  and  along  one  side  thereof  there  ran  a  clear, 
small  stream  of  water,  as  if  some  affluent  spring  dis 
charged  itself  upon  the  rocky  way  ;  and  not  far  ahead 
of  her  a  fire  burned  brightly,  over  which  a  huge  copper 
kettle  was  boiling,  and  several  women  were  busy 
thereat,  some  of  them  washing  clothes,  and  some  of  them 
cooking  in  various  vessels  at  the  fire.  A  young  and 
beautiful  girl  was  ironing  out  the  last  of  a  little  heap  of 
linen  napkins,  and  upon  the  table  at  which  she  worked 
was  a  plate  bearing  a  cross  made  of  thin  layers  of  un 
leavened  bread.  The  stronger  light  all  about  them 
prevented  them  from  observing  Phoebe  and  her  little 
lamp  until  she  had  come  quite  close  unto  them.  The 
young  girl  was  the  first  to  note  her  coming,  and  looking 
up  she  said  quietly  :  "  AValk  thou  by  faith  ?" 

"  In  His  name,"  answered  Phoebe,  promptly.  Then 
all  of  the  women  saluted  her,  and  the  young  girl  said  : 
"  Thou  art  welcome,  sister." 

Then  Phoebe  answered  :  "I  am  Phoebe,  the  daughter 
of  Lucanius,  a  deacon  of  the  community  of  Doscius, 
beyond  the  Tiber.  I  seek  Dorcas,  the  daughter  of 
Faustina.  Canst  thou  tell  me  where  she  may  be  found  ?" 

"  I  am  that  Dorcas,"  said  the  maiden.  "  I  have  just 
finished  the  preparations  for  the  service  of  to-morrow  ; 
come  thou  with  me." 

Then  she  laid  the  folded  napkins  upon  her  arm,  and 
taking  the  plate  of  bread  in  her  hand,  she  passed  along 
through  the  gallery,  and  Phoebe,  bearing  her  lamp, 


THE  DAUGHTER    OF  FAUSTINA.  137 

walked  at  her  side.  At  a  short  distance  they  came  unto 
an  opening  of  another  gallery,  over  the  entrance  to 
which  hung  a  curtain  of  heavy  cloth,  and  passing  this 
they  entered  a  large  hall,  lighted  by  a  huge  lamp  sus 
pended  from  the  rocky  roof,  and  on  either  side  of  this 
hall  were  smaller  chambers  cut  out  of  the  rock,  over  the 
entrance  of  each  of  which  were  similar  curtains  hang 
ing.  "Here  we  abide,"  said  Dorcas.  "Mine  apart 
ment  is  at  the  end  of  this  hall ;  let  us  go  thither." 

And  when  they  had  gone  thither,  Dorcas  carefully 
laid  away  the  napkins  and  the  bread  in  a  wooden  safe 
divided  off  by  shelving,  and  placing  a  chair  for  Phoabe, 
invited  her  to  be  seated,  saying  :  "  Our  evening's  meal 
will  soon  be  ready.  Thou  canst  rest  thyself  now,  and 
ere  long  sup  with  us." 

And  Phoebe  said  :  "I  pray  thee,  sister,  stand  thou 
there  where  the  house-light  will  fall  upon  thee.  I  desire 
to  see  thee  clearly." 

And  gazing  upon  the  maiden  with  a  singular  expres 
sion  of  countenance,  she  continued  :  "  Sister,  thou  art 
wondrous  fair  ;  it  is  not  strange  he  loveth  thee  so 
much." 

"  Of  whom  speakest  thou  ?" 

"  Surely  thou  canst  guess." 

"But  I  will  not  do  so,  sister.  Of  whom  dost  thou 
speak  ?" 

"  Of  the  young  centurion,  Marcellus." 

A  pang  of  intense  feeling  nipped  at  the  young  girl's 
heart,  but  the  lifelong  habit  of  self-control  hardly  per 
mitted  a  trace  of  it  to  appear  in  her  face  or  voice,  as  she 


138  DORCAS, 

quietly  answered  :  "  Knowest  thou  the  Koman,  sister  ? 
Dost  thou  come  from  him  ?" 

"  Yea,  verily  ;  and  I  come  hither  only  to  tell  thee 
truly  all  that  I  know  of  him,  and  the  reason  of  my  seek 
ing  thee." 

Then  Dorcas  seated  herself  beside  Phoebe,  and,  taking 
her  hand,  said  : 

"  Sister,  I  am  ready  to  listen  to  thee.  But  is  the 
young  man  well  ?  Doth  he  seem  to  be  happy?  When 
didst  thou  see  him  last  ?" 

"Three  days  ago,"  answered  Phoebe.  "He  is  not 
ill,  but  is  apparently  in  sore  trouble  because  of  thy 
disappearance  from  his  father's  house.  But  I  must  tell 
thee  all  that  hath  happened."  And  then,  beginning 
with  the  arrest  of  her  father  and  herself,  she  rapidly,  but 
clearly,  narrated  everj"  incident  thereof,  and  of  her  brief 
acquaintance  with  Marcellus.  Her  truth,  directness, 
and  sensibility  would  be,  perhaps,  impossible  to  a 
chaste  maiden  of  a  later  age  in  the  world's  history,  for 
good-breeding — good  form,  as  fashionable  cant  calleth 
it — hath  been  largely  substituted  for  genuine  modesty, 
and  our  linen-cambric  phylacteries  of  "refinement" 
have  taken  the  place  of  that  plain,  unpretentious  holi 
ness  of  heart  and  of  life  which  neither  knew  nor 
cherished  any  unchaste  purpose  or  desire. 

Before  Phoebe's  narration  was  ended,  the  two  girls 
were  friends,  and  more  than  once  during  her  recital 
they  sat  sobbing  in  each  other's  arms,  and,  having 
given  every  incident,  Phoebe  continued:  "And  so, 
sister,  if  thou  desirest  to  see  the  centurion  again,  I  am 


THE  DAUGHTER    OF  FAUSTINA.          139 

to  arrange  a  time  and  place  for  the  interview.  If  thou 
desirest  to  write  anything  unto  him,  I  will  bear  thy 
letter.  If  thou  wouldst  send  any  message  unto  him,  I 
will  deliver  it  for  thee.  If  thou  dost  refuse  to  hold  any 
communication  with  him,  I  will  so  inform  him.  What 
wilt  thou  do,  Dorcas  ?" 

Dorcas  did  not  immediately  reply,  but  seemed  to  be 
buried  in  very  serious  thought.  At  last  she  said:  "  I 
will  even  consider  the  matter  carefully,  for  I  know  not 
what  I  ought  to  do.  First  thou  must  sup  with  us,  and 
afterwards  we  can  converse  yet  more.  Come  thou 
with  me,  sister." 

And  passing  out  into  an  adjoining  hall  they  found 
the  other  women  already  assembled,  and  having  been 
affectionately  welcomed  by  them — all  of  them — they  sat 
down  to  their  simple  but  healthful  repast ;  one  of  the 
oldest  of  the  women  having  first  given  thanks  to  God 
for  the  peace  and  comfort  in  which  His  providence 
permitted  them  to  live. 

And  afterward  the  two  girls  went  together  a  short 
distance  through  the  catacombs  into  the  chapel  of 
Epaphras,  and  sat  there  together  discussing  their 
affairs  ;  and  a  strong  friendship  grew  between  them. 
For,  both  of  them  being  Christians,  there  was  no  possi 
bility  of  the  intervention  of  those  "roots  of  bitterness  " 
that  spring  up  to  trouble  even  the  purest  hearts,  under 
systems  which  create  false  social  and  class  distinctions, 
based  upon  those  ideas  of  superiority  that  grow  out  of 
idolatries  of  birth,  rank,  interest,  property,  and  other 
extraneous  circumstances,  that  have  as  little  to  do  with 


140  DORCAS, 

the  character  of  an  individual  as  the  metal  of  which  a 
dog's  collar  is  made  has  to  do  with  the  nature  of  the 
brute  ;  and,  because  they  both  were  Christians,  each 
of  them  attributed  to  the  other  the  same  simplicity,  un 
selfishness  and  truth,  the  same  purity  of  life  and  of 
heart,  the  same  desire  to  understand  and  to  do  that 
which  is  right,  which  she  knew  to  be  the  guiding  pur 
pose  of  her  own  heart  and  conduct.  Hence,  the  con 
fidence  which  they  mutually  reposed  in  each  other  was 
of  a  stronger,  truer,  purer  growth  than  more  recent 
civilization  can  produce  or  comprehend  ;  because  the 
difference  between  the  girls  of  that  period  consisted  in 
the  fact  that  some  of  them  were  Christians  and  some 
were  not.  Those  who  were  so,  met  upon  terms  of 
equality  ;  those  who  were  not,  were  separated  from 
each  other  by  the  infinite  cobwebisms  of  false  distinc 
tions  which  prevailed  throughout  all  heathenism,  and 
were,  for  the  most  part,  natural  enemies,  each  envying, 
suspecting,  and  hating  the  other ;  each  striving  to 
defeat  and  mortify  the  other ;  each  seeking  some  advan 
tage  and  precedence  of  the  other — all  of  them  born  to 
an  inheritance  of  social  lies  and  shams,  and  false  pre 
tences,  about  which  they  quarreled  and  schemed,  only 
in  a  smaller  more  miserable  way,  than  did  the  men 
under  the  influence  of  the  same  wild-beast  civilization. 
But  these  two  girls  being  both  Christians,  and  finding 
between  themselves  a  similarity  in  age  and  sentiments 
as  to  all  that  nature  creates,  or  grace  contributes,  to  the 
adornment  of  character,  loved  and  trusted  each  other 
from  the  first ;  although  the  hands  and  face  of  Phoebe 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF   FAUSTINA.  141 

showed  plainly  the  traces  of  her  farm-life  labor,  while 
those  of  Dorcas,  who  had  been  reared  in  the  darkness 
of  the  catacombs,  with  lighter  tasks  to  do,  were  delicate 
as  finest  waxwork. 

"It  is  best,  I  think,"  said  Dorcas,  continuing  their 
pleasant,  confidential  talk.  "  that  I  do  not  see  him 
again,  nor  write  to  him,  nor  send  him  any  message, 
except  a  single  line  in  order  to  verify  the  statement 
that  thou  hast  seen  me  as  thou  didst  promise  him." 

"I  am  not  wise  enough  to  advise  thee,"  answered 
Phoabe.  "But  wouldst  thou,  in  any  case,  be  the  wife 
of  a  Koman  V" 

"  I  know  not."  '  "  But  I  would  not  marry  any  man 
that  is  not  a  Christian,  no  matter  what  might  be  his  na 
tivity  or  rank,  nor  how  highly  I  might  esteem  him." 

"But  dost  thou  remember  that  Paul  saith  the  un 
believing  husband  may  be  sanctified  by  a  Christian 
wife?" 

"  Yea,"  said  Dorcas  ;  "but  it  seemeth  to  me  that  in 
that  place  he  speaketh  of  two  who  are  already  husband 
and  wife,  of  whom  one  shall  become  a  Christian,  and 
not  of  those  who  are  unmarried." 

"  But  dost  thou  not  believe  that  his  great  love  for 
thee  would  lead  him  to  adopt  thy  faith  ?" 

"  That  might  even  be,"  she  said.  "  But  I  have  been 
taught  that  it  would  be  wrong  to  marry  one  who  is 
not  a  Christian  ;  and  that  one  may  not  do  evil  that 
good  may  come  of  it. " 

"  But  thou  lovest  the  Roman — canst  thou  be  happy 
if  thou  shalt  see  his  face  no  more  ?" 


142  DORCAS, 

"Perhaps  not  happy,1'  answered  Dorcas,  sadly; 
"but  to  be  free  is  better  than  to  be  happy,  and  I  shall 
be  free  ;  but  they  who  sacrifice  the  truth  are  never  free, 
they  are  the  slaves  of  that  for  which  they  have  given  up 
the  truth." 

"  Thou  speakest  of  the  liberty  of  the  gospel  ?" 

"Surely,"  replied  Dorcas,  "for  the  slavery  of  the 
body  is  an  evil  of  smaller  consequence.  The  only  real 
bondage  is  the  slavery  of  the  soul." 

"He  saith  he  cannot  live  without  thee,"  said  Phoebe, 
"and  his  appearance  indicates  that  he  speaketh  truly. 
Thou  knowest  that  the  common  refuge  of  the  heathen 
from  any  sorrow  which  maketh  them  weary  of  the 
world  is  suicide." 

The  young  girl  shuddered  as  her  companion  spoke 
these  words,  knowing  the  fearful  readiness  with  which 
the  pagans  sought  for  that  refuge  from  any  disappoint 
ment,  but  she  murmured  :  "It  is  easy  for  any  one  to 
find  excuses  or  justification  for  that  course  which 
agreeth  Avell  with  his  own  wishes  ;  but  thou  knowest 
that  the  question  for  us  is  never  what  might  please  us 
best,  but  is  the  straight  and  narrow  way  of  present  right 
and  duty.  I  think  that  any  one  who  earnestly  desireth 
to  do  so,  may  find  the  way." 

"Shall  I  tell  Marcellus  that  if  he  were  a  Christian 
thou  wouldst  be  his  wife  ?" 

"Nay,"  answered  Dorcas.  "To  be  a  Christian 
would  be  for  him  to  suffer  worldly  sacrifices  that  none 
but  Jesus  hath  the  right  to  demand  of  any  human 
being — sacrifices  which  I  would  not  dare  to  accept  if  he 


THE  DAUGHTER    OF  FAUSTINA.          143 

should  offer  to  make  them.  Even  to  profess  the  faith 
and  adopt  the  forms  thereof  would  involve  the  loss  of 
his  social  position  and  political  importance,  his  property 
and  influence — and,  perhaps,  his  life  also — a  sacrifice 
too  great  to  be  made  for  anything  less  than  the  love  of 
Christ  and  the  sure  promise  of  eternal  life,  which  alone 
outweigh  all  earthly  considerations.  It  is  better  that 
we  never  meet  again." 

"  But  he  would  leave  thee  unobstructed  in  the  exer 
cise  of  thy  religion,  and  his  influence  might  serve  to 
protect  many  Christians  besides." 

"But  if  he  remain  a  heathen,  scarce  a  day  could  pass 
us  by  in  which  I  must  not  yield  to  the  idolatries  in 
which  he  hath  been  reared,  or  else  find  myself  separated 
in  heart  from  him  in  all  the  ceremonies  of  religion  and 
in  all  the  incidents  of  home.  Such  a  union  is  no  Chris 
tian  marriage.  It  is  but  the  legal  copartnership  of 
paganism.  The  difficulties  in  the  way  of  marriage  be 
tween  a  Christian  and  an  idolater  seem  to  me  to  be 
irreconcilable  and  insuperable." 

"  And  canst  thou  not  find  any  neutral  ground  between 
them,  on  which  both  might  stand  secure  ?" 

"  Surely  there  can  be  none.  Honor,  wealth,  rank, 
powrer,  war,  slavery,  marriages  of  convenience  or  of 
interest — all  the  aims  and  purposes  of  life  which  he 
hath  been  trained  up  to  regard  as  best  and  highest — 
seem  criminal  and  sinful  things  to  me.  Useful  labor,  or 
employments  which  he  esteems  to  be  fit  only  for  slaves, 
I  know  to  be  a  holy  duty  from  which  there  is  no  escap 
ing  without  sin.  The  faith  on  which  I  rest  my  soul  is 


144  DORCAS, 

unto  him  an  impracticable  and  insane  delusion.  Thou 
knowest  that  in  Rome  not  only  all  that  labor  with  then- 
hands,  but  all  that  follow  any  useful  pursuit — their 
barbers,  tailors,  bakers,  mechanics,  teachers  ;  all,  ex 
cept  soldiers,  priests  and  lawyers — are  slaves  or  worse 
than  slaves.  A  million  of  people,  who  are  even  less 
esteemed  than  the  other  million,  who  live  upon  the  pub 
lic  granaries  and  do  nothing — voluntary  paupers  who 
care  for  nothing  except  daily  bread  and  the  games  of 
the  circus— panem  et  tircenses,  as  their  own  poet  saith. 
Only  those  employments  which  are  useless  or  pernicious 
to  mankind  are  deemed  to  be  respectable,  and  all  other 
work  is  left  to  slaves  or  foreigners.  We,  sister,  have 
been  taught  to  despise  all  men  that  do  not  add  some 
thing  useful  to  the  common  stock.  The  differences 
between  Christianity  and  heathenism  go  down  to  the 
very  roots  of  life,  and  there  can  be  neither  happiness 
nor  peace  in  any  attempt  at  uniting  them  together.  I 
must,  therefore,  write  unto  Marcellus  that  thou  hast 
come  to  me  according  to  thy  promise,  and  that  I  can 
give  no  answer  except  that  which  I  have  already  given  ; 
this  shalt  thou  take  to  him  and  nothing  more." 

"Art  thou  certain,"  said  Phoebe,  ''that  thou  dost 
really  love  this  man  ?" 

"  Yea,"  answered  Dorcas,  "  and  with  all  my  heart. 
But  I  love  not  his  idolatry,  nor  his  mode  of  life.  Xor 
do  I  think  that  any  heathen  could  understand  the  only 
love  which  we  could  value,  or  could  dare  to  trust.  For 
their  love,  even,  it  seemeth  to  me,  is  like  their  religion  ; 
like  their  political  and  military  glory  ;  like  their  mag- 


THE  DAUGHTER    OF  FAUSTINA.  145 

nificent  highways  and  aqueducts  ;  like  their  splendid 
cities  and  costly  tombs — a  physical  thing  only.  They 
know  the  worth  of  a  sane  mind  in  a  sound  body — the 
intellectual  and  sensuous  sides  of  existence — but  they 
have  no  spiritual  life,  or,  if  any,  it  is  mute  and  ignor 
ant,  incapable  of  discerning  and  loving  other  spirits, 
incapable  of  expressing  itself.  In  some  respects,  even 
this  most  excellent  Marcellus  exciteth  my  pity.  He 
seemeth  to  be,  in  some  things,  lower  than  an  infant — 
almost  on  a  level  with  the  brutes — as  I  think  all  men 
would  be  but  for  the  faith  of  Christ." 

"  How,  then,  is  it  that  thou  lovest  him  ?" 
"That,  indeed,  I  cannot  tell  thee,"  said  Dorcas, 
"nor  can  I  understand  it.  He  is  a  very  handsome 
youth  ;  but  there  must  be  some  handsomer.  He  is 
bright  and  strong  ;  but  there  must  be  some  more  excel 
lent.  He  is  brave,  and  true,  and  tender  ;  yet  there 
must  be  some  that  are  at  least  his  equal  in  all  this.  In 
his  spiritual  life  he  is  but  a  child  ;  and  yet  there  must 
be,  even  of  his  age,  some  full-grown,  glorious  Christian 
men.  And  yet,  in  my  heart,  I  love  him  far  more  than 
I  could  love  any  man  on  earth.  All  my  heart  goes  out 
to  him  alone,  and  I  could  live  or  die  alike  to  bring  him 
happiness,  and  for  him  would  think  naught  too  great  a 
sacrifice,  except  the  faith  of  Jesus.  Ah,  Phoebe,  it  is  so 
strange,  so  sad,  so  sweet,  so  pitiful !  I  know  not  how 
it  is  that  of  all  men  on  earth,  I  do  love  only  him." 

"  I  have  met  no  Roman  of  high  rank  but  him,"  said 
Phosbe  ;  "  those  whom  I  have  known  among  the  work 
ing  people  seem  to  belong  unto  a  different  race  of  men." 


146  DORCAS, 

"The  higher  classes  of  them,"  said  Dorcas,  "are 
little  better  than  intellectual  brutes,  and  the  lower 
classes  are  brutes  of  lower  intelligence.  But  Chris 
tians,  even  those  who  cannot  read  nor  write,  are  gentle, 
refined,  attractive." 

"What  causeth  this  vast  difference  ?" 

"  I  have  heard  the  learned  Epaphras  declare  that  this 
condition  of  things  is  the  necessary  result  of  all  human 
governments  over  a  people.  He  saith  often  that 
governments  which  recognize  war,  slavery,  private 
property  rights,  rank,  title,  prerogatives,  never  did, 
and  never  can,  do  anything  better  for  mankind  than  to 
produce  a  ruling  class  at  the  top,  to  whom  all  the  ad 
vantages  of  civilization  accrue,  and  an  oppressed  or  en 
slaved  people  at  the  bottom,  upon  which  fall  all  the 
burdens  of  the  world,  and  some  form  of  ecclesiasticisin 
between  these  two  extremes,  seeking  to  adjust  mutual 
rights  and  duties  by  arms  and  religion.  He  saith  that 
the  gospel  of  our  Lord  alone  can  ever  give  liberty  to  the 
great  multitudes  of  men,  and  that  even  the  persecuted 
Christians  are  the  only  people  that  ever  taste  the  sweet 
ness  of  real  personal  freedom  ;  and  that  the  Church 
will  make  all  people  free,  by  abolishing  the  !.aws  which 
enslave  and  degrade  them.  Ko  said  that  our  Lord, 
although  he  addressed  the  Scribes  and  Pharasees  only, 
really  meant  every  ruling  class  on  earth,  when  he  de 
nounced  those  who  bind  heavy  burdens  for  other  men's 
shoulders  which  they  themselves  would  not  touch  with 
a  little  finger  ;  and  that  the  ruling  classes,  no  matter  by 
what  name  designated,  will  always  so  bind  the  poor, 


THE  DAUGHTER   OF  FAUSTINA.  147 

until  the  masses  of  mankind  shall  become  Christians, 
and  by  the  power  of  faith  abolish  war,  slavery,  and 
mammon  worship,  which  are  instruments  of  tyranny."  . 

"  I  know  not  how  that  may  be,"  said  Phoebe.  "  We 
came  hither  from  the  Bridge  of  Fabricus,  and  along  the 
Appian  Way,  through  the  most  densely  populated  por 
tion  of  Home,  and  there  was  a  mighty  contrast,  truh", 
between  the  palaces  of  the  great  and  wealthy  and  the 
vast  multitude  that  scarcely  live  by  labor,  and  the  yet 
greater  multitude  of  Romans  that  are  too  proud  to 
work  and  afraid  to  steal,  and  content  to  live  in  idleness, 
drawing  their  support  from  the  public  granaries.  I 
know  not  the  causes  of  it,  but  it  seems  to  me  to  be  a 
fearful  and  a  shameful  thing." 

"This  cruel  and  infamous  state  of  Rome,  Epaphras 
declareth  to  be  the  condition  of  all  great  cities,  and 
that  it  is  everywhere  the  net  result  of  the  science  of 
government,  and  that  there  can  never  be  any  perma 
nent  escape  therefrom,  except  on  the  basis  of  our  com 
mon  church.  Thinkest  thou,  Phoebe,  that  a  woman 
that  is  a  Christian  could  conscientiously  be  the  wife  of 
any  man  whose  highest  perception  of  life  and  duty  is 
to  preserve,  enforce,  and  work  out  unto  its  legitimate 
results,  such  a  system  as  this  ?  Surely  it  must  be  true 
that  the  less  a  Roman  noble  and  a  Christian  girl  see  of 
each  other  the  better  for  the  peace  of  both.  But  it 
groweth  late.  Thou  must  abide  with  me  until  after 
services  to-morrow,  and  as  much  longer  as  thou  canst. 
Come  with  me." 

And,  so  they  returned  unto  the  great  hall,  and  re- 


148  DORCAS, 

joined  the  other  women,  and  after  simple  but  earnest 
religious  services,  they  sought  their  sleeping-rooms, 
which  opened  from  the  hall  on  every  side.  For, 
although  there  was  no  difference  between  day  and 
night  in  their  subterranean  home,  they  divided  the 
hours  between  the  duties  incumbent  upon  them,  just 
as  those  did  who  lived  above  ground — so  many  to 
sleep,  so  many  to  toil,  so  many  to  religion,  so  many 
to  reading  and  conversation — and  their  hidden  life 
was  peaceful  and  pleasant  enough,  and  on  the  next 
day,  which  was  Sunday,  they  went  together  to  the 
services  at  which  Marcellus  was  to  be  so  strangely 
present. 


CltAPTEE  XII. 

IN  WHICH    THE    GOSPEL    IS   STATED   AS  IT   WAS 
IN  A.  D.  312. 

AFTER  Epaphras  had  blessed  them,  as  related  at 
the  close  of  the  Christian  services  in  the  subterra 
nean  chapel,  the  congregation  began  to  take  up  their 
lamps,  and  to  depart  by  the  various  galleries  that  led 
into  the  chapel,  and  the  centurion  was  resolved  not  to 
go  thence  until  he  had  seen  and  spoken  to  Dorcas  ;  but 
he  did  not  desire  to  be  discovered  in  the  act  of  listen 
ing  to  the  strange  and  awful  scenes  which  he  had  just 
witnessed.  There  was  no  time,  however,  for  delibera 
tion,  and  with  that  celerity  of  action  and  decision 
which  is  part  of  the  military  education  and  character, 
he  took  the  hilt  of  his  sword  in  both  hands,  and  draw 
ing  up  his  toga,  so  as  to  conceal  both  his  face  and  the 
weapon,  he  dropped  upon  his  knees,  with  his  face  to 
the  wall,  his  head  bowed  upon  his  hands,  so  that  by 
glancing  sideways  he  could  still  see  Dorcas  sitting  in 
the  chapel,  and  the  young  girl,  Phoebe,  sitting  beside 
her  ;  wherefore  the  centurion  knew  that  she  had  been 
faithful  to  her  contract  with  him.  Although  his  own 
accidental  discovery  of  the  chapel  forestalled  the  visit 
which  she  had  promised  to  make  to  him  upon  the  even 
ing  of  that  same  day,  he  was  not  the  less  pleased  by, 

and  grateful  for,  this  proof  of  her  fidelity. 

149 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  151 

Quietly  the  congregation  dispersed,  many  of  them 
passing  through  the  gallery  in  which  he  kneeled  ;  but 
to  them  the  sight  of  a  man  upon  his  knees  anywhere 
near  those  sacred  precincts  was  an  every-day  occur 
rence,  and  no  one  accosted,  or  even  seemed  to  notice, 
him.  Soon  he  saw  the  presbyter  go  over  to  where 
Dorcas  sat,  and  take  a  seat  beside  her,  and  he  rightl}- 
judged  that  all  the  rest  had  gone,  and  that  the  pres 
byter  was  that  Epaphras  of  whom  he  had  heard  Dorcas 
speak.  The  centurion  gazed  upon  the  young  girl's 
perfect  face  with  profoundest  love  and  admiration,  and 
it  seemed  to  him  that  he  lived  again,  after  long  weeks 
of  care  and  apathy  like  death.  Then  he  arose,  and 
advancing  quickly  to  the  threshold  of  the  chapel,  he 
saw  that  both  Dorcas  and  the  presbyter  observed  his 
approach,  and  then  he  darted  forward,  and,  raising  the 
maiden's  hand,  he  bowed,  and  kissed  it  passionately, 
exclaiming :  "  O,  darling,  I  have  found  thee  at  last, 
thank  all  the  gods  at  once  !  Why  didst  thou  so  cruelly 
leave  me,  Dorcas  ?  Every  day  have  I  sought  thee  sor 
rowing,  and  every  hour  I  pined  to  see  thy  face,  until 
the  great  grief  of  thine  absence  is  wearying  out  my 
heart,  and  wasting  all  my  strength  !  But  I  have  found 
thee  at  last,  and  thou  shalt  pass  out  of  my  sight  no 
more  unless  thou  promise  I  shall  see  thee  again,  or 
unless  thou  leave  this  dreary  place  and  go  back  to  my 
father's  house  with  me." 

At  the  first  pause  in  the  impulsive  torrent  of  his 
speech,  the  girl  arose,  with  quiet  dignity,  and  said  : 
"  Centurion,  this  is  the  presbyter,  Epaphras,  my  guar- 


152  DORCAS, 

dian  and  friend.  And  this,  father,  is  that  centurion, 
Marcellus,  of  whom  I  have  told  thee." 

Recalled  to  himself  by  her  grave  and  quiet  demeanor, 
the  centurion  saluted  Epaphras  respectfully,  and  said  : 
"Thou  must  pardon  my  want  of  courtesy,  for  I  have 
suffered  so  long,  and  was  so  rejoiced  to  find  Dorcas 
again  that  I  could  think  of  naught  else." 

And  turning  unto  Phoebe,  the  joung  man  said  kindly  : 
*'  I  rejoice  to  see  thee,  Phoebe,  knowing  well  that  thy 
presence  here  is  a  proof  of  thy  truth  and  faithfulness. 
And  I  beg  of  thee  to  believe  that  I  do  entertain  for  thee 
all  the  respect  and  friendship  which  is  due  to  girls  who 
can  be  kind  and  faithful,  and  that  cannot  soil  their  lips 
with  any  false  promise." 

And  Phoebe  took  the  hand  which  Marcellus  extended 
to  her,  and  answered  :  "  Truly,  I  came  to  Dorcas  as  I 
had  promised  thee,  centurion ;  and  she  did  agree  to 
write  unto  thee  a  letter,  which  I  was  to  have  carried  to 
thee,  but  thy  coming  unexpectedly  hath  marred  our 
little  plans.  So  that  thou  and  Dorcas  must  take  the 
quarrel  into  your  own  hands,  and  leave  me  out  of  it.  I 
bid  you  both  good-bye,  and  shall  even  pray  often  for 
the  happiness  of  both."  And,  notwithstanding  that 
they  pressed  her  to  remain,  Phoebe  lighted  her  little 
lamp  and  quietly  departed.  Epaphras  asked  him  to  be 
seated,  and  then  said  :  "  Where  be  thy  companions  ? 
or  didst  thou  come  alone  ?" 

"  I  am  entirely  alone,"  replied  Marcellus,  "  or  rather 
I  followed  close  behind  an  aged  woman,  who  unknow 
ingly  showed  me  the  way." 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  153 

The  presbyter  seemed  much  relieved  by  this  informa 
tion,  and  said  :  "  Thou  art  very  welcome,  and  so  are  all 
that  may  come  peaceably." 

Then  Dorcas,  whose  hand  he  held  and  would  not  re 
linquish,  gazed  on  his  haggard  face  with  tender,  gleam 
ing  eyes,  and  spoke  to  him,  saying  :  "  Centurion,  how 
didst  thou  find  the  way  hither  ?" 

Then  he  said  :  "  Every  moment  since  thou  didst  for 
sake  us  I  have  thought  of  thee  only,  and  day  by  day  I 
sought  to  find  thee.  From  the  information  I  did 
gather  from  many  different  sources,  I  thought  the  path 
which  thou  didst  follow  must  be  through  that  thicket  in 
which,  after  weary  days  of  watching,  I  finally  discovered 
the  entrance  to  this  place  by  dogging  the  footsteps  of 
an  aged  woman  who  came  that  way  this  morning. 
Dorcas,  if  I  had  found  thee  not  I  would  have  died!" 

"Wert  thou>  then,  in  sight  and  hearing  of  the  religious 
services  of  this  little  band  of  Christians  from  the  time  at 
which  she  whom  thou  didst  follow  entered  here  ?"  in 
quired  Epaphras. 

"Yea  ;  I  heard  and  saw  all  that  occurred  !" 

"  And  didst  thou  behold  any  of  those  infamous  and 
unholy  ceremonies  which  the  Romans  of  thy  class 
attribute  to  the  secret  assemblies  of  the  Christians  ?" 

"Nay,"  replied  Marcellus  ;  :'I  cannot  imagine  a 
form  of  divine  service  more  simple,  sweet  and  pure,  or 
more  acceptable  to  any  holy  God.  But  the  last,  the 
Anastasis !  That  was  a  thing  so  very  marvelous,  so 
overwhelmingly  grand  and  sublime  in  its  simplicity, 
that  my  mind  is  stupefied  by  the  event,  and  I  can  with 


154  DOE  CAS, 

difficulty  credit  my  senses,  which  do  assure  me  that  1 
saw  it !  Was  the  man  truly  dead?" 

"  Ask  thy  father,  the  Vice-Prefect  Yarus,  whether 
on  yesterday  evening  the  head  of  the  Christian  Charis 
was  not  given  to  his  friends  in  one  basket  and  his  body 
in  another  ?" 

"  It  is  an  astounding  fact,"  said  Marcellus.  "  I  can 
not  realize  it.  It  transcends  the  power  of  magic." 

"  Didst  thou  see  any  magic  used,  except  the  name  of 
Jesus  Christ?" 

"  Xay,  truly,"  said  Marcellus,  "  I  saw  the  Anastasis  ; 
but  its  very  simplicity  seems  to  demonstrate  its  impos 
sibility.  Do,  then,  Christians,  indeed,  by  faith  in  His 
name,  suspend  or  annul  natural  laws  at  their  own 
will  ?" 

"Kay,  verily,"  answered  Epaphras,  "but  God  so 
made  the  world  that  faith  in  Christ  is  sufficient  for  the 
justification  of  a  sinner,  and  so  that  the  faith  of  the 
church,  organized  in  accordance  with  His  will  and 
obeying  His  commandments,  hath  force  to  raise  the  dead, 
and  to  do  many  other  marvelous  works,  and  we  Chris 
tians  believe  that,  as  the  winds  blow  or  the  rain  falleth 
by  His  will,  so  do  these  works  occur.  But  didst  thou 
witness  aught  in  all  our  service  that  can  justify  the 
Roman  law  which  persecuteth  us  even  unto  death?" 

"Nothing,"  cried  Marcellus,  "and  henceforth  my 
efforts  shall  not  be  spared  to  put  an  end  to  punishments 
so  unprovoked  and  so  unjust.  Indeed,  I  cannot  under 
stand  how  conduct  so  injurious  to  a  harmless  people 
ever  came  to  have  the  sanction  of  the  Roman  law  ?" 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  155 

"That  I  will  even  now  explain  to  thee,"  said 
Epaphras.  "Three  hundred  years  ago,  the  Jews 
who  were  expecting  the  coming  of  Messiah,  son  of 
the  One  True  God,  were  so  blinded  by  their  own 
pride,  and  ambition  and  selfishness,  that  they  supposed 
He  would  come  in  power  and  great  glory  to  over-, 
throw  their  enemies  and  make  Jerusalem  the  chief 
city  of  the  world  ;  although  their  own  prophets  had 
foretold  that  He  would  come  as  a  man  of  sorrows  and 
acquainted  with  grief ;  poor,  despised  and  afflicted ; 
and  when  He  did  so  come,  teaching  the  brotherhood  of 
man,  teaching  that  war  was  crime,  and  ought  to  cease, 
and  that  no  Christian  should  bear  arms  in  any  cause  ; 
teaching  that  slavery  is  sin  against  our  fellow-men,  who 
are,  indeed,  our  own  brethren  ;  teaching  communism 
of  property  and  rights,  as  the  only  safeguard  of  the 
many  against  the  superior  intelligence,  selfishness,  and 
rapacity  of  the  few,  who  always  plunder  and  oppress 
the  multitudes  ;  teaching  that  marriage  is  a  holy  sacra 
ment,  founded  upon  mutual  affection  and  consent,  and 
that  divorce  is  sinful,  and  destructive  of  society  ;  teach 
ing,  in  a  word,  that  His  kingdom,  instead  of  being  only 
a  greater  tyrant  and  warrior  than  any  other  kingdom, 
as  they  desired,  should,  indeed,  be  a  democracy,  pure 
and  simple,  social  and  political,  based  upon  faith  and 
communism,  in  which  the  family  should  be  the  founda 
tion,  and  the  Church  the  superstructure,  of  society. 
The  Scribes  and  Pharisees,  who  were  the  rich,  official, 
respectable  classes  of  the  Jews,  and  covetous  of  prop 
erty  and  rank,  accused  Him  of  sedition,  and  instigated 


156  DORCAS, 

the  Romans  to  crucify  Him  ;  which  they  did,  in  the 
days  of  Pontius  Pilate,  in  accordance  with  the  declara 
tions  of  the  prophets.  The  Roman  emperors,  from 
Tiberius  until  this  very  day,  have  persecuted  the  Chris 
tians  for  teaching  and  practicing  the  gospel  of  Jesus. 
The  brotherhood  of  all  men,  the  denial  of  the  right  of 
the  Christians  to  bear  arms,  the  manumission  of  the 
slaves,  the  holding  of  all  property  in  common,  the 
abrogation  of  all  social  and  political  distinctions  be 
tween  men,  and  classes  of  men,  that  they  may  be  one 
in  Christ.  The  elevating  of  monogamic  marriage  into 
a  sacrament,  and  the  prohibition  of  divorce.  These 
principles,  based  upon  and  enforced  by  faith,  constitute 
the  Christian  democracy.  These  are  the  laws  and  the 
customs  which  the  Christians  keep  as  religion,  and  are 
those  which  the  Romans  have  always  condemned  and 
punished,  as  '  a  dire  and  malevolent  superstition  ;'  as 
inspired  '  by  hatred  of  the  human  race  ;'  as  '  contrary 
to  reason  and  nature ;'  as  '  extravagant  laws  and 
opinions ;'  as  'a  criminal  association. '  But  thou 
canst  see,  centurion,  that  no  man  is  compelled  to 
enter  into  the  kingdom  of  Heaven  ?  It  is,  and  must 
be,  his  own  voluntary  act.  And  thou  seest  that  this 
faith  is  peaceable  and  pure." 

"  Surely,"  said  Marcellus.  "But  why  do  you  not  go 
into  the  forum,  and  into  the  Senate,  and  boldly  pro 
claim  this  faith  and  demand  recognition  therefor  at  the 
hands  of  the  emperor  and  the  law  ?'• 

"Ah,"  said  Epaphras,  "dost  thou  believe  that  they 
who  constitute  the  ruling  classes  at  Rome  would  permit 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  157 

the  public  preaching  of  the  gospel  of  Christ,  that 
teaches  the  fundamental  truth  that  all  men  are,  and  of 
right  ought  to  be,  equal  before  God,  consciousness  and 
law  ?  Or  dost  thou  think  that  a  rich  man,  except 
under  the  power  of  dominant,  all-controlling  faith,  can 
overcome  his  selfishness,  which  is  fortified  behind  the 
ramparts  of  civil  and  municipal  law,  so  far  as  to  seek 
admission  into  the  Church  of  Christ,  which  holds  all 
property  in  common  and  requires  as  a  condition  of  ad 
mission  the  transfer  of  the  believer's  estate  unto  the 
common  church  ?  Or  dost  thou  suppose  that  they  who 
hold  their  fellow-men  as  slaves,  and  derive  honor,  con 
sequence,  convenience  and  wealth  from  this  unjust 
ownership,  would  permit  men  to  teach  publicly  as 
divine  truth,  and  as  the  final  utterance  of  law,  philoso 
phy  and  statesmanship,  the  gospel  of  Christ,  which  de 
nies  the  master's  title,  manumits  the  slave,  and  raises 
the  chattel  to  equality  with  other  men,  making  him 
'  no  more  as  a  slave,  but  as  a  brother  beloved  ?'  Dost 
thou  not  see  that  if  all  Romans  could  be  led  to  adopt 
this  faith,  the  false  and  cruel  social  and  political  dis 
tinctions  which  are  based  on  rank  and  wealth  and 
power  would  fade  out  of  the  empire  ?  Dost  thou  not 
see  that  if  any  man  does  in  his  heart  believe  that  the 
safety  of  his  soul  and  the  welfare  of  his  fellow-men 
depend  upon  the  acceptance  of  this  faith,  he  will  then 
bestow  his  property  upon  the  Common  Church  and 
become  the  brother  of  all  believers  ?  And  it  is  for  that 
reason  we  Christians  pray,  saying,  '  Give  us  daily  bread 
sufficient  for  daily  use. '  We  have  no  authority  to  pray 


15$  DORCAS, 

for  more,  seeing  that  all  that  is  over  goeth  into  the 
common  stock.  Dost  thou  not  perceive  that  if  this 
gospel,  which  is  '  good  news '  to  the  poor,  could  be 
publicly  proclaimed,  all  the  poor  and  all  the  slaves 
would  take  the  kingdom  of  heaven  by  storm  ?  Dost 
thou  not  see  that  the  triumph  of  this  gospel  would 
abrogate  the  laws  that  maintain  the  idolatries  of  wealth, 
and  rank,  and  property,  and  the  power  and  influence  of 
the  robbers,  usurers  and  extortioners  who  oppress  the 
multitudes  ?  Nay,  verily,  they  crucified  our  Lord  and 
have  persecuted  the  church  from  that  day  until  now 
because,  and  only  because,  they  do  not  desire  the  com 
mon  good,  the  general  welfare,  the  public  safety,  pros 
perity  and  happiness  of  all,  but  prefer  their  own 
covetous  desires  for  selfish  aggrandizement,  ease  and 
power,  to  the  regeneration  of  mankind." 

The  presbyter's  sweet  voice  swelled  into  grand,  son 
orous  utterances,  and  his  face  grew  bright  with  holy 
earnestness  and  zeal  as  he  proceeded  with  his  exposi 
tion  of  the  gospel ;  and  Marcellus  was  strongly  moved 
and  interested. 

"But  how  knowest  thou,"  he  said,  "that  these 
teachings  of  thy  Christ,  these  laws  of  His  Kingdom,  are 
divinely  true  and  right,  and  obligatory  upon  all  men  ?" 

"  I  know  this,"  answered  Epaphras,  "  as  thou  canst 
not  yet  know  it.  But  thou  mayest  test  their  verity  by 
one  safe  rule  :  '  Do  unto  others  as  thou  wouldst  have 
them  do  unto  you.'  " 

"Let  me  understand  that,"  said  Marcellus.  "  If  I 
would  not  wish  to  be  degraded  into  slavery  myself  I 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  159 

must  not  own  a  slave  !  If  that  rule  were  carried  out 
in  all  things,  truly  it  would  cut  very  deep  ! — and  yet  it 
seemeth  right  and  just  enough." 

"Yea,"  said  Epaphras,  "and  if  thou  wilt  seek  with 
honest  manliness  and  courage  to  measure  all  things — 
social,  political  and  religious,  both  governments  and 
men — by  that  one  rule  thou  shalt  grow  in  knowledge  of 
the  truth.  But  it  is  time  that  I,  and  Dorcas  also,  go  hence 
to  other  duties  that  claim  our  attention.  Centurion, 
thou  seemest  an  honorable  man,  and  I  desire  thee  to  be 
on  thy  guard  lest  some  carelessness  on  thy  part  may 
make  thy  discovery  of  our  place  of  meeting  lead  to  vex 
ation  of  my  faithful  church." 

"Thy  warning  is  hardly  necessary,"  replied  Marcel- 
lus,  "for  I  respect  and  esteem  thee  mightily,  and  I 
would  protect  Dorcas  to  the  death.  In  fact,  I  came 
hither  only  to  seek  her,  and  to  bear  her  away  or  perish 
in  attempting  it ;  but  I  confess  to  thee  that  my  mind  is 
much  changed  in  many  things,  and  even  in  this  resolve 
also.  But  Dorcas,  my  life,  my  darling,"  he  cried,  with 
that  look  of  tender,  pleading  love  which  she  found  it  so 
hard  to  resist,  "  I  cannot  leave  thee,  and  I  will  not,  un 
less  thou  promise  that  I  may  see  thee  again  and 
speedily." 

Dorcas  turned  unto  the  presbyter,  saying  :  "Father, 
may  he  not  come  hither  on  next  Sabbath  morning  ?" 

The  presbyter  sighed  deeply  enough,  but  answered  : 
"Come  thou  hither  on  the  Seventh  morning  hence, 
centurion  ;  but  go  thou  now  in  peace  ?" 

"Verily,"  replied  Marcellus,  "it  is  not  possible  for 


160  DORCAS, 

me  to  find  my  way  back  whence  I  came.  Let  Dorcas 
guide  me  into  that  gallery  which  leadeth  unto  the  en 
trance  by  which  I  came." 

Epaphras  seemed  anno}-ed  and  perplexed  at  his  re 
quest,  but  the  girl  turned  to  the  centurion  and  laid  her 
little  hand  lightly  upon  his  arm,  and  gazing  into  his 
eyes  with  eyes  in  which  beamed  the  soft  light  of  mighty 
love  and  trust,  she  said,  most  sweetly:  "  Once  thou  didst 
make  Dorcas  flee  away  from  thee  in  mortal  terror ;  but 
now,  centurion,  is  she  not  safe  with  thee  ?" 

And  the  young  man's  eyes  grew  bright  with  tears  of 
tenderness,  as  he  replied  :  "  Yea,  by  my  soul,  as  safe 
as  if  thy  mother  held  thee  in  her  arms  I" 

Then  the  young  girl  took  up  her  lamp,  and  gave 
Marcellus  another,  and  placing  her  hand  in  his,  she 
said  :  "  Come  on,  centurion  ;  I  will  be  your  guide." 

The  proud  Roman  youth  respectfully  saluted  Epaph 
ras,  then,  hand  in  hand,  the  twain  walked  on  through 
the  vast  solitude  and  darkness  of  the  catacombs. 

"  Dear  Dorcas,"  he  said,  "  why  dost  thou  leave  me 
so  ?  If  thou  wilt  come  back  to  me,  thou  needst  not 
offer  sacrifice  to  any  god  of  Rome  ;  but  I  will  build  thee 
a  beautiful  chapel,  and  Epaphras  and  thy  friends  shall 
worship  in  thine  own  way,  under  the  protection  of  my 
father.  Darling,  wilt  thou  not  come  ?  I  cannot  live 
without  thee  !" 

But  Dorcas  said,  with  profound  tenderness:  "Let 
us  not  talk  of  that  just  now  !  I  do  not  think  thou  yet 
understandest  what  we  Christian  maidens  mean  by 
love  1" 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  161 

And  so  they  walked  on,  until  they  reached  the  gal 
lery  that  led  to  the  entrance  by  which  the  centurion 
had  come. 

Pausing  here,  the  young  girl  said  :  "  I  leave  thee 
now.  Thy  way  is  in  this  gallery,  and  thou  canst  not 
stray  from  it.  When  thou  comest  where  the  light  of 
day  showeth  across  thy  path,  extinguish  thy  lamp,  and 
set  it  upon  any  projection  of  the  rock  which  thou  may'st 
find.  When  thou  comest  near  the  entrance,  first  look 
about  thee  carefully,  and  go  not  forth  if  any  one  be  in 
sight  of  thee.  Be  careful  not  to  let  fall  any  word  that 
might  lead  us  into  trial.  Come  on  the  morning  of  the 
Seventh  day,  and  I  will  meet  thee,  and  conduct  thee  to 
the  chapel.  Now  bend  down  thy  head  to  me,"  and 
as  he  complied  with  her  request,  she  laid  her  arm 
lightly  round  his  neck  and  kissed  him  tenderly,  then 
turned  away,  and  went  swiftly  back. 

The  young  man  sought  not  to  detain  her — did  not 
call  her  back — but  watched  her  lovingly  as  she  glided 
swiftly  away  into  the  darkness,  and  a  mighty  joy  came, 
wave-like,  over  his  spirit,  and  he  said  to  himself  that 
the  kiss  which  she  had  left  upon  his  lips  was  the  seal  of 
a  higher  love  and  confidence  than  he  had  ever  before 
dreamed  of,  and  that  he  would  prove  worthy  of  the 
trust  she  had  reposed  in  him. 

Then,  resuming  his  jo.urney,  he  went  on  to  the  en 
trance,  happy  with  the  faint  but  exquisite  dawn  of  a 
happiness  different  from  all  that  he  had  ever  known 
before. 


CHAPTEK  XIII. 

BIRDS,    BEASTS   AND   ORACLES  THAT  PROPHECY. 

"  IN  the  meantime,  Maxentius,  the  Emperor  of  Home, 
having  heard  vague  rumors  of  the  purpose  of  Con- 
stantine,  who  was  then  in  Gaul,  to  reclaim  the  em 
pire  by  force  of  arms,  determined  to  make  every 
possible  effort  to  wage  a  successful  war,  and  to  add 
Gaul  and  Germany  to  his  own  dominions  rather 
than  to  surrender  the  sovereignty  of  Italy,  and  limit 
his  imperial  claims  to  Spain  and  western  Africa.  He 
was  a  thorough  pagan  in  every  thought,  purpose  and 
desire  of  his  soul,  and  was  consequently  the  dupe  of  the 
priests  who  administered  the  religion  of  Rome.  First 
of  all,  being  terribly  afraid  to  engage  in  war  with  Con- 
stantine,  and  desiring  to  fortify  his  courage  by  such 
confidence  as  superstition  could  generate  in  the  heart  of 
a  heathen  emperor,  he  secretly  consulted  the  harus- 
pices,  auguries  and  oracles,  and  having  construed  all  of 
their  divinations  to  be  favorable  to  himself  and  his 
purpose,  with  good  hopes  he  entered  upon  the  work  of 
preparation  for  the  impending  war  with  Constantine. 
But  not  only  did  he  desire  to  be  assured  in  his  own 
mind  that  the  gods  were  propitious  unto  him,  he  de 
sired,  also,  to  impress  upon  the  whole  Roman  people 
the  conviction  that  the  immortals  had  solemnly  pledged 
all  heaven  to  give  him  the  victory  in  the  approaching 

163 


164  DORCAS, 

contest.  For  this  purpose  he  caused  proclamation  to 
be  made  throughout  the  city  that  upon  a  day  ap 
pointed  the  Emperor  would  go  in  solemn  state  to  the 
Temple  of  the  Jupiter  of  the  Capitol  to  consult  the 
Pontifex  Maximus,  and  have  him  publicly  announce 
the  divine  will  in  regard  to  the  issue  of  the  war  which 
seemed  to  all  of  them  to  be  inevitable.  It  happened 
that  the  day  named  by  Maxentius  was  the  Wednesday 
after  that  Sabbath  upon  which  Marcellus  had  dis 
covered  the  retreat  in  which  the  maiden,  Dorcas, 
abode,  and  had  conversed  with  her  and  Epaphras,  as 
hath  been  already  narrated.  The  young  man  was 
dimly  self-conscious  that  the  idolatry  of  Rome  was 
losing  its  life-long  hold  upon  his  intellect  and  con 
science,  but  the  process  of  disenchantment  was  so 
gradual  and  indefinite  that  he  had  no  clear  perception 
of  it ;  and  so  when  the  Emperor  and  the  great  men  of 
Rome,  proconsuls,  consuls,  prefects,  senators,  sediles, 
all  persons  of  patrician  rank,  all  officers  of  the  legions 
stationed  in  and  near  the  city,  "and  all  Romans  who  were 
well-disposed  toward  the  most  holy  Emperor  Maxentius" 
were  solemnly  warned  to  observe  the  day,  and  to  par 
ticipate  in  the  sacred  ceremonies  by  which  the  Em 
peror  sought  to  learn  the  will  of  the  gods  concerning 
him,  the  young  centurion,  like  the  other  young  men  of 
his  own  rank,  joined  the  solemn  procession  that  wended 
its  way  up  to  the  Capitoline  Hill,  upon  which  stood  the 
vast  temple  dedicated  to  the  Jupiter  of  the  Capitol. 

It  was  a  grand,  impressive,  and  beautiful  pageant. 
The  Emperor  went  first  on  horseback,  accompanied  by 


THE   DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  165 

his  favorites  of  the  palace,  all  clad  in  magnificent  and 
variegated  costumes  appropriate  to  their  different  offi 
cial  stations  about  the  person  of  the  Emperor.  Then 
followed  proconsuls,  consuls,  aediles,  and  prefects  on 
foot — a  throng  of  splendid  men  distinguished  by  mighty 
deeds  done  for  Imperial  Home  in  every  quarter  of  the 
then  known  world.  Then  came  the  august  senators 
in  solemn  black,  the  severe  and  classic  lines  of  the  sena 
torial  toga  agreeing  well  with  their  most  grave  and 
reverent  demeanor.  Then  followed  in  dense  array, 
and  in  all  the  panoply  of  war,  the  officials  and  men  of 
the  legions,  bearing  standards  which  in  other  days  they 
had  advanced  to  victory  in  the  fierce  storm  of  battle  in 
almost  every  province  of  the  empire.  After  these  came 
a  mighty  procession  of  wealthy  and  influential  citizens, 
representing  every  grade  and  occupation  known  in  the 
most  populous  and  busy  city  in  the  world  ;  and  the 
long  procession  ended  with  a  vast  and  indistinguish 
able  crowd  of  plebeians,  all  of  whom,  high  and  low,  bore 
gifts  unto  the  temple,  each  according  to  rank  and  sta 
tion,  to  propitiate  the  gods. 

Long  before  the  hour  of  noon  the  hill  was  covered  by 
the  restless  human  sea  that  rolled  away  on  every  side, 
and  surged  over  into  the  adjacent  streets  and  vacant 
lots.  All  the  vast  area  of  the  temple — at  one  end  of 
which  Maxentius  and  his  immediate  attendants  stood 
upon  a  slightly  elevated  platform,  while  at  the  other 
appeared  the  altar  and  the  statue  of  the  god,  far  above 
which  was  a  covered  balcony  for  the  vestal  virgins — 
was  confusedly  crowded  by  the  highest  dignitaries  of 


166  DOECA8, 

the  Koraan  state,  both  civil  and  military,  and  by  as 
many  of  those  whom  their  rank,  or  some  special  per 
mission  allowed  to  intermingle  with  them,  as  could  find 
space  on  which  to  stand. 

The  splendid  altar  glowed  with  various  flames,  and 
clouds  of  incense  rose  and  filled  the  place  while  slowly 
drifting  upward  to  the  roof.  Then  from  the  lofty 
balcony  on  which  they  stood  concealed  by  delicatest 
lattice  work  the  vestal  virgins  chanted  that  lofty 
hymn  which  Callimachus,  of  Gyrene,  composed  in 
honor  of  the  mighty  Jove,  and  the  sweet  cadence  of  the 
mellifluous  Greek  verses  wandered  like  angel  voices  all 
through  the  mighty  temple.  Then  swinging  the  sacred 
censers  with  many  graceful  genuflections  before  the 
statue  of  the  god,  the  Pontifex  Maximus,  clad  in 
gorgeous  robes,  embroidered  with  laces  and  woven  gold 
and  precious  stones,  prayed  unto  Jove  to  be  most  favor 
able  to  the  Emperor,  to  accept  the  offerings  made  by 
him  and  by  all  pious  citizens  of  Rome,  and  to  indicate 
by  the  flight  of  sacred  birds  and  by  the  entrails  of  the 
sacred  beasts,  and  by  the  oracles,  that  he  would  give 
victory  to  Maxcntius. 

Afterward,  the  Pontifex  Maximus  took  from  the 
sacred  cage  the  birds  that  prophesied,  and  placing  them 
upon  his  wrists,  released  them  at  the  open  window  in 
the  rear  of  the  altar,  and  he  and  the  priests  delegated 
for  that  office  carefully  noted  their  prophetic  flight. 
The  birds  that  had  been  well  fed  and  long  confined  rose 
a  short  distance  in  the  air  and  then  circled  around  the 
temple  on  their  unused  and  heavy  pinions,  and  then, 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  167 

not  caring  to  pursue  their  flight  over  the  city  to  the 
distant  fields  and  woods,  soon  sailed  home  and  alighted 
upon  the  open  window  sill.  Then  the  Pontifex  Maxi 
mus  took  them  and  exhibited  them  unto  Maxentius. 
Then  he  advanced  to  the  edge  of  the  raised  platform  on 
which  the  altar  rested,  and  in  a  loud  voice  cried  out : 
"Behold,  the  sacred  birds  have  refused  to  leave  the 
temple,  and  the  holy,  safe  and  prosperous  city,  but  have 
come  back.  Thus  the  god  promises  to  be  propitious 
unto  Rome." 

Then  the  priests  restored  the  birds  to  their  cages, 
and  the  assembled  multitude  burst  into  a  shout  of 
triumph  :  "  Glory  to  the  most  holy  Emperor  Maxen 
tius,  to  Avhom  the  god  Jupiter  is  most  favorable." 

Close  at  hand,  the  priests,  with  their  sharp,  sacrifi 
cial  knives,  cut  the  throats  of  the  beasts  of  sacrifice,  and 
bore  the  reeking  entrails,  heart  and  livers,  to  the  Pon 
tifex  Maximus,  who  diligently  inspected  them  while 
the  priests  were  burning  at  the  altar  such  portions  as 
were  required  to  be  burned  in  sacrifice.  And  again 
the  Flamen  of  Jupiter  advanced  to  the  edge  of  the 
platform,  and  made  proclamation  that  the  augury  was 
altogether  favorable  unto  Rome.  And  once  more  a 
mighty  shout  of  triumph  pealed  through  the  vast 
temple,  and  was  taken  up  by  those  without  and  rolled 
down  the  slopes  of  the  sacred  hill,  and  spread  through 
out  the  waiting  city. 

Then  said  the  Emperor  Maxentius  in  a  loud  voice 
unto  the  Pontifex  Maximus  :  "  Thank  thou  the  mighty 
god  for  me,  and  promise  what  thou  wilt  in  my 


168  DORCAS, 

name  unto  the  temple  !  But  go  now  and  consult  the 
oracle !" 

Then  the  Pontifex  Maximus  passed  out  of  sight  unto 
another  chamber  to  the  right  hand  of  the  altar,  and 
after  some  small  delay,  during  which  an  indistinguish 
able  murmur  came  out  from  that  place,  the  Pontifex 
returned,  and,  advancing  once  more  to  the  edge  of  the 
platform,  in  a  loud  voice  answered:  "The  oracle 
sendeth  to  the  most  holy  Emperor  Maxentius  and  to 
the  people  of  Rome  this  message  :  Certum  est  Impera- 
torem  Maxentium  super  esse  Constanthnim.  And  again  the 
vast  multitude  gave  forth  a  shout  of  triumph,  saying  : 
"Glory  to  the  most  holy  Emperor  Maxentius,  the 
conqueror  of  Constantine,  to  whom  the  oracle  hath 
promised  victory  !" 

Then,  while  the  vestal  virgins  chanted,  the  Emperor 
left  the  temple,  with  his  immediate  attendants. 

During  the  whole  of  these  religious  services,  all  of 
them  were  constantly  engaged  in  conversation  among 
themselves — talking  of  politics,  of  matters  of  private 
business  or  pleasure,  or  any  other  subject  of  mutual 
interest — and  only  when  the  Pontifex  Maximus  might 
come  to  the  edge  of  the  platform  to  announce  the 
results  of  his  divinations  did  any  one  think  it  necessary 
to  keep  silence,  or  to  pay  any  attention  to  the  sacred 
rites ;  and  so,  when  it  happened  that  Marcellus  per 
ceived  among  those  who  had  obtained  permission  to 
enter  into  the  body  of  the  temple  the  grave  face  of  the 
presbyter  Epaphras,  he  stepped  up  to  him,  and  cour 
teously  saluted  him,  and  entered  into  a  conversa- 


THE  DAUGHTER    OF  FAUSTINA.  169 

tion  with  him — a  rather  unusual  thing  for  any  Roman 
of  his  rank  to  do  with  one  of  the  despised  sons  of 
Israel. 

"  It  is  a  grand  ceremony,  surely,"  the  centurion  said. 
"How  does  it  affect  thee,  Epaphras  ?  How  doth  it 
seem  compared  with  thine  own  simple  worship  ?" 

And  Epaphras  answered  :  "  Yonder  is  the  Flamen 
of  .Jupiter  and  his  attendant  priests,  his  oblations  and 
altars,  his  sediles  and  vestal  virgins.  Yonder  is  the 
Emperor  Maxentius  and  his  courtiers.  These  two 
parties  are  evidently  interested  in  the  sacred  rites. 
Here,  in  the  body  of  the  temple,  are  the  senators  and 
chiefest  men  of  Rome,  who  have,  perhaps,  a  political 
interest  in  the  result  of  the  divinations.  Outside,  and 
all  around,  are  thousands  of  citizens  of  the  middle 
classes  ;  and  beyond  these  the  vast  and  unconsidered 
multitude  of  plebeians.  Wilt  thou  tell  me,  centurion, 
what  part  or  interest  these  innumerable  crowds  can 
have  in  the  grand  service  of  this  god  ?  Except  to  bring 
unto  the  temple  offerings  whereby  this  splendid  ritual 
may  be  maintained,  and  its  costly  observance  paid  for, 
what  have  they  to  do  with  it  ?  What  to  them  is  this 
ornate  temple  service  ?  How  doth  this  religion  in  any 
wise  affect  their  hearts  and  consciences,  or  how  con 
trol  and  elevate  their  lives  ?" 

"Truly,"  answered  Marcellus,  "they  have  nothing 
to  do  with  it,  except,  as  thou  sayest,  to  bring  their  offer 
ings  to  the  temple,  and  await  the  proclamation  of  the 
Pontifex  Maximus,  or  listen  to  the  divinations  by  bird, 
and  beast,  and  oracle.  But  what  wouldst  thou  have, 


170  DORCAS, 

then  ?  It  is  not  possible  for  every  man  to  be  a  priest, 
and  offer  sacrifice,  and  interrogate  the  gods  ?" 

"Ah,"  said  Epaphras,  "I  would  have  but  one 
Priest,  that  lives  for  ever,  and  that  hath  offered  up 
Himself  to  be  the  one  true  sacrifice  for  the  sins  of  all 
mankind  ;  and  I  would  have  every  man  a  worshiper, 
having  access  by  faith  in  this  one  Priest  and  sacrifice, 
unto  God,  the  Father  of  us  all.  I  would  have  each 
man  make  true  religion  a  matter  personal  to  himself, 
so  that,  knowing  the  Priest  and  Sacrifice  to  have  been 
both  perfect  man  and  true  divinity — sinless,  loving,  and 
divine — the  heart  and  life  of  the  sincere  worshiper 
might  be  transformed  and  renewed  into  the  image  and 
similitude  of  that  holy  life  which  this  Priest  and  Sacri 
fice  Himself  did  live  !  Knowest  thou  of  whom  I  speak, 
centurion  ?" 

"Yea;  I  do  know!"  said  Marcellus  ;  "but  thou 
seemest  in  one  particular  to  err  ;  for  we  Romans  do 
have  private  and  personal  worship,  each  man  for  him 
self,  at  home,  or  at  the  temple,  as  each  one  may 
choose,  to  any  god  whom  he  may  trust  the  most !" 

"Verily,"  said  Epaphrus,  "he  may  sacrifice  unto 
the  gods  at  home,  and  all  of  his  worship  is  the  offering 
and  the  prayer  that  it  may  be  accepted.  He  may  go 
into  the  temple  alone,  and  with  his  offering  purchase 
the  good-will  of  the  priest,  but  this  worship,  also, 
endeth  with  the  gift,  and  the  petition  that  it  may  be 
accepted.  Ye  thus  seek  to  gain  the  divine  aid  for  the 
accomplishment  of  personal  ends,  whether  the  thing 
for  which  ye  pray  be  right  or  wrong  ;  or  else  ye  seek  to 


THE  DAUGHTER   OF  FAUSTINA.          171 

expiate,  pay  for,  some  specific  act  of  sin.  Ye  know 
nothing  of  sin,  but  only  of  sinful  deeds,  and  the  divine 
beauty  and  consolation  of  the  idea  of  the  forgiveness 
of  sin  is  unknown  to  your  religion.  Hence  thou  know- 
est  that  in  this  personal  religion  of  the  Komans  thou 
canst  not  find  any  one  that  prays  for  forgiveness  of  all 
sin  and  freedom  from  the  dominion  of  it  ;  but  only 
seeking  to  expiate  some  vile,  specific,  sinful  deed ; 
thou  wilt  also  find  them  beseeching  some  god  to  aid 
them  in  accomplishing  a  sinful  purpose.  Thou  wilt 
find  the  adulteress  praying  that  her  husband  may  re 
main  undeceived,  and  that  her  paramour  may  he  pros 
perous  and  generous.  Thou  wilt  find  the  Hakiree  be 
seeching  Venus  for  larger  profits  from  their  impure  and 
loathsome  trade.  Thou  wilt  find  the  thief  praying 
unto  the  Hermes  Dolios  for  skill  and  gains  in  the  com 
mission  of  an  intended  larceny,  and  promising  a  por 
tion  of  his  plunder  for  the  favor  of  the  god  ;  thou  wilt 
find  young  maidens  dedicating  their  girdles  and  brace 
lets  to  Athenis  Aptera  ;  thou  wilt  find  youths  praying 
to  Hercules  or  Jupiter  to  hasten  the  death  of  some  rich 
relative  in  order  that  they  may  acquire  his  estate  ;  and 
thou  wilt  find  baser  criminals  invoking  the  gods  to  aid 
them  in  greater  crimes  ;  but  not  one  anywhere  that 
seeketh  after  personal  holiness,  or  prays  to  be  delivered 
from  the  desire  to  sin.  Centurion,  knowest  thou  that 
all  of  this  is  true?" 

"Thou  speakest  truly,"  replied  Marcellus ;  "but 
one  thought  which  thou  hast  uttered  seemeth  intangi 
ble  to  me.  We  know  that  a  sinful  act  must  be  ex- 


172  DORCAR, 

piated  ;  but  thou  seemest  to  draw  a  distinction  between 
sin  and  a  sinful  deed.     How  is  that  ?" 

"A  sinful  act,"  said  Epaphras,  "is  an  intentional 
transgression  ;  sin  is  nonconformity  to  the  will  of  God  ;  ye 
Romans  seek  to  expiate  the  act.  Ye  know  nothing  of 
the  forgiveness  of  sin  ;  the  change  of  heart  and  mind 
by  which  the  will  is  conformed  to  the  will  divine.  But 
an  evil  tree  yieldeth  evil  fruits  ;  a  bitter  fountain  yield- 
eth  bitter  waters.  The  religion  of  Rome,  and  all  others 
except  His  whose  name  we  dare  not  mention  in  this 
place,  seek  to  deal  with  sins  which  are  the  evil  fruits, 
the  bitter  waters ;  but  that  one  seeketh  to  make  the 
tree  good  that  the  fruits  may  be  good  also  ;  seeks  to 
purify  the  fountain  that  its  waters  may  be  pure.  For 
thou  knowest,  centurion,  as  every  man  must  know, 
that  if  a  man  commit  sin  for  which  no  expiation  can  be 
made,  and  the  sorrow  of  the  world  taketh  hold  upon 
him,  unless  in  his  time  of  trial  he  shall  have  strength 
and  courage  to  look  away  beyond  all  this  ornate  priest 
craft  and  pageantry,  and  in  some  form  cast  himself  upon 
the  mercy  of  an  unknown  God,  the  religion  of  thy  coun 
try  giveth  him  no  hope  nor  help  at  all.  But  this  un 
known  God,  whom  all  men  ignorantly  do  sometimes 
worship,  is  known  to  us  that  do  believe,  because  He  hath 
revealed  Himself  to  us  through  that  one  Priest  and  sacri 
fice  of  whom  we  have  been  speaking.  So  that  each  indi 
vidual  man  may,  if  he  will,  without  any  other  sacrifice  or 
priest  whatever,  by  faith  draw  nigh  unto  God  to  the  joy 
and  consolation  of  his  soul,  finding  true  forgiveness  even 
for  sins  that  thy  religion  doth  not  pretend  to  expiate. 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  173 

"Thou  seest,  therefore,  that  this  religion  is  for 
every  man  ;  but  the  ornate  and  costly  superstition  of 
thy  country  is,  for  the  most  part,  a  business  for  the 
priests  only,  and  for  the  Emperor  ;  for  the  most  part  as 
much  a  department  of  the  government,  as  much  a  politi 
cal  power,  as  are  its  military,  police,  and  mercantile 
laws  and  regulations.  It  is  a  human  institution,  de 
pendent  for  its  very  existence  and  maintenance  upon 
human  laws  and  governments,  blended  with  them 
and  their  purposes  and  interests,  participating  in  all 
their  wrongs;  and  is,  therefore,  of  necessity  in  itself 
thoroughly  secular  and  dishonest,  and  incapable  of  re 
generating  the  life  of  any  man  or  nation." 

"  I  think  I  comprehend  thee  mostly ;  but  what  dost 
thou  mean  by  saying  it  is  thoroughly  secular  and  dis 
honest  V" 

"I  mean  that  every  such  system  is  bound  by  the 
very  conditions  of  its  existence  to  give  its  sanction,  in 
the  name  of  God,  to  whatever  the  law  of  its  domicile 
may  prescribe,  or  else  to  cheat  and  juggle  with  false 
words  and  pretences  to  hide  its  own  repugnance,  as 
thou  hast  seen  done  this  very  day." 

"  In  what  respect  ?"  said  Marcellus. 

"Thou  hast  heard  the  Flamen  of  Jupiter  declare 
that  all  the  divinations  were  favorable  unto  Rome," 
replied  Epaphras  ;  "but  that  he  was  not  asked  about 
at  all.  He  was  asked  whether  the  gods  would  give 
victory  not  to  Home  but  to  Maxentius,  and  that  he 
does  not  answer,  because  he  does  not  know  any  more 
than  thou  dost.  To  this  trick  he  had  resorted  because. 


174  DORCAS, 

if  he  answereth  unfavorably  to  Maxentius,  he  dreads  the 
imperial  wrath  ;  but,  if  he  answer  favorably,  then  he 
may  soon  have  cause  to  tremble  at  the  anger  of  Con- 
stantine,  for  the  issue  of  the  war  is  doubtful ;  he,  there 
fore,  saith  'favorable  unto  Home,'  in  order  not  to  be 
committed  to  either  faction  in  the  state,  and  leave 
room  to  translate  his  augury  in  accordance  with  the 
issue,  however  the  matter  may  come  to  pass." 

"  That  is,  indeed,  a  sharp  criticism  upon  the  Pontifex 
Maximus,"  answered  Marcellus ;  "but  art  thou  not 
mistaken  ?  Did  he  not  announce  that  the  oracle  had 
declared  that  Maxentius  should  overcome  Constan- 
tine?" 

"Wilt  thou  repeat  the  message  of  the  oracle  ?"  said 
the  presbyter. 

"Yea,"  replied  the  centurion;  "the  very  words 
were  :  Certumest  Imperatorcm  Maxcntium  siqw  esse  Con- 
stantinum  /" 

"And  dost  thou  not  perceive,"  answered  Epaphras, 
smiling,  "  that  these  words  may  just  as  well  and  as 
truly  signify  that  '  Constantine  will  overcome  Maxen 
tius '  as  that  'Maxentius  will  overcome  Constantine  ?' 
The  Flamen  of  Jupiter  hath  used  your  Latin  accusative 
with  the  infinitive  verb  to  construct  a  sentence  for  the 
oracle  having  a  perfect  double  meaning,  so  that  no 
matter  how  the  event  shall  come  to  pass,  he  may  boldly 
tell  the  people  that  the  oracle  foretold  it." 

"  The  fraud  is  transparent  ;  but  how  would  the  other 
religion  have  answered  in  such  a  case  ?"  asked  the 
centurion.  "  Not  at  all.  They  who  believe  it  teach 


THE  YOUNG   MAN   KEPT   HIS    EYES   ON   HER.— p.    121. 


176  DORCAS, 

that  all  war  is  illegal  and  criminal.  They  dare  not 
bear  arms  on  either  side,  nor  pray  for  the  success  of 
either  party  to  a  crime.  But  they  continually  pray  for 
peace." 

"I  can  hardly  understand,  even  yet,"  replied  Mar- 
cellus,  "how  a  religion  can  be  maintained  without  a 
government." 

"Yet,  if  thou  wilt  consider  the  matter  well,"  said 
Epaphras,  "thou  wilt  surely  find  that  wherever  and 
whenever  religion  is  blended  with  government,  it  must 
necessarily  be  degraded  into  a  mere  ecclesiasticism,  and 
so  hopelessly  incapable  of  taking  one  single  step  in 
advance  of  the  laws  in  the  enlightenment  and  regene 
ration  of  mankind.  But  the  true  religion,  which  hath 
for  three  centuries  maintained  itself,  and  hath  spread 
abroad,  even  beyond  the  boundaries  of  the  empire— in 
every  quarter  of  the  world — riot  only  hath  no  govern 
ment  to  support  it,  but  hath  been  persecuted  and  out 
lawed  by  imperial  Home  even  from  the  beginning,  and 
yet  in  spite  of  all  opposing  agencies,  in  secret,  unheeded 
— almost  unknown  except  to  its  own  communities — it 
groweth  continually.  Because  it  is  not  a  kingdom  of 
this  world  ;  hath  no  partnership  with  any  earthly  king 
dom  ;  dependeth  upon  none  of  them,  and  is  a  personal 
matter  to  each  individual  man  and  woman  unto  whom 
its  messages  may  come.  So  that  if  thou  cast  a  man 
alone  on  rocky  Patmos,  or  if  thou  drive  him  forth  into 
the  Libyan  deserts,  beyond  all  human  companionship 
and  aid  ;  or  if  thou  deprive  him  of  hearing,  sight,  and 
speech,  and  chain  him  in  the  dungeon's  darkness  and 


THE  DAUGHTER   OF  FAUSTINA.  177 

solitude,  yet  everywhere,  in  all  times  and  places,  he 
may,  by  faith  in  our  one  Priest  and  Sacrifice,  hold 
sweet  communion  with  the  God  and  Father  of  all. 
And  no  mortal  enginery  on  earth  can  deprive  even  the 
poorest  and  meanest  of  the  disciples  of  the  consolations 
of  his  faith,  or  prevent  him  from  offering  up  acceptable 
worship  to  his  God.  It  would  gratify  me  much,  centu 
rion,  to  have  thee  examine,  with  equal  care  and  can 
dor,  those  salient  points  of  difference  between  the 
religion  of  Rome  and  all  others  on  the  one  side,  and  that 
one  of  which  we  have  been  speaking  ;  for  I  desire  thy 
welfare." 

But  the  services  were  ended,  the  Emperor  was  with 
drawing  from  the  temple,  and  Marcellus  being  required 
to  "resume  his  station  among  his  brother-officers,  they 
two,  parted  courteously,  and  each  one  went  his  way. 


CHAPTER  XIY. 

IN   WHICH   MARCELLUS   DISCOVERETH   A   BARBARIAN. 

DURING  all  the  week  the  young  man  seemed  to  him 
self  to  live  upon  the  memory  of  his  visit  to  the  Chris 
tian  chapel  in  the  catacombs,  and  the  new  and 
wonderful  experience  which  he  had  encountered  there. 
He  thought  that  he  was  happier  than  he  had  ever  been 
before,  and  his  step  once  more  grew  elastic  and  his 
visage  bright. 

The  Vice-Prefect  saw  this  joyous  change,  and 
imagined  it  to  have  resulted  from  the  fact  that  the 
youth  had  thus  quickly  mastered  the  passion  which 
seemed  to  have  been  consuming  him,  but  made  no  in 
quiries —  satisfied  to  see  that  the  centurion  had  resumed 
the  cheerful  discharge  of  duty,  and  had  ceased  to  wan 
der  with  aimless  step  and  hopeless  countenance  along 
the  Appian  Way. 

This  conversion  to  a  physically  normal  and  healthful 
condition  was  accompained  also  by  changes  in  his  moral 
and  mental  constitution  of  which  the  youth  was  almost 
unconscious.  His  nature  was  softening  under  the  influ 
ence  of  the  higher  and  purer  culture  with  which  he  had 
come  into  brief  and  pleasant  contact.  Even  the  fash- 
-  ionable  brutalities  and  sensualisms  of  Rome  were  grow 
ing  distasteful  to  him.  The  lascivious  exhibition  of  the 

theatre  seemed  to  him   in  some  undefined,  intangible 
178 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  17S 

way  to  be  degrading  not  only  to  the  shameless 
actresses  who  trod  the  stage,  but  to  all  true  woman 
hood  ;  and  the  cruel  and  murderous  scenes  of  the 
Coloscum  no  longer  elicited  his  admiration  nor  ex 
torted  his  applause.  The  splendid  barbarian  was  be 
coming  refined  by  association  with  loving  charity, 
which  even  yet  he  knew  not  how  to  appreciate  at  its 
true  value,  and  with  living  truth,  that  he  had  only 
seen  in  evanescent  gleams  and  "  as  through  a  glass 
darkly." 

He  knew  nothing  of  the  division  of  time  by  Sabbaths, 
a  custom  common  to  both  Jews  and  Christians,  but  he 
counted  the  days  until  the  seventh,  and  rejoiced  like  a 
child  as  the  number  grew  less  and  less  between  him  and 
the  day  of  his  promised  meeting  with  Dorcas,  and 
when  the  seventh  day  had  come,  very  early  in  the 
morning,  with  quick,  elastic  steps  and  beaming  eyes 
he  strode  once  more  along  the  Appian  Way. 

The  passionate,  fierce  desire  to  possess  the  object  ol 
his  affections,  which,  indeed,  was  all  that  the  sensual 
Komans  knew  of  love,  had  almost  faded  out  of  his 
heart,  and  slowly  but  beautifully,  as  a  rose  unfolds  in 
dew  and  starlight,  a  dim  consciousness  was  blooming 
in  his  spirit  that  the  love  which  alone  could  be  worthy 
of  Dorcas  was  that  affection  which  seeketh,  first  of  all, 
the  happiness  of  the  one  beloved.  He  could  not  have 
uttered  this  dawning  perception  in  any  form  of  words, 
but  it  elevated  and  refined  him  ;  and  with  a  sense  ol 
sweeter  and  higher  happiness,  he  hastened  to  the  en 
trance  of  the  catacombs. 


180  DORCAS, 

Dorcas  was  there  awaiting  him.  The  morning  light 
toyed  with  her  golden  hair,  the  loving  light  caressed 
her  glorious  face  and  lissome  form,  and  a  light  more 
pure  and  enchanting  than  the  rising  dawn  slept  in  her 
azure  eyes.  She  sprang  forward  to  meet  him,  and  ex 
tended  both  her  little  hands,  which  the  centurion 
gently  took  in  his  own,  and  then  stood  looking  down 
upon  her  glowing  face  with  throbbing  heart  and  beam 
ing  eyes,  and  softly  said  :  "  "Wilt  thou  not  kiss  me, 
Dorcas  ?" 

"Yea,  gladly  and  lovingly,"  she  answered,  with  a 
happy  smile.  She  was  so  happy.  Only  a  month  ago 
he  would  have  seized  her  in  his  arms,  even  against  her 
will,  and  would  have  crushed  her  rosebud  of  a  mouth 
with  cruel,  sensual  lips — she  saw  the  mighty  difference 
and  rejoiced.  He  felt  the  mighty  difference  in  his  very 
soul,  and  the  consciousness  of  it  both  humbled  and  ex 
alted  him. 

Then  said  he  most  tenderly  :  "I  have  been  a  brute 
unto  thee,  Dorcas  ;  thou  must  forgive  me,  darling,  for 
I  did  not  know  !"  and  she  answered  to  him  :  "  Surely 
thy  fault  is  hardly  personal  to  thee,  Marcellus,  seeing 
that  it  was  but  that  of  Roman  civilization  and  of 
paganism  !"  Then  with  a  sweet  blush  spreading  over 
her  exquisite  face,  in  low,  delicious,  happy  tones,  she 
said :  "I  love  thee,  Marcellus  ;  I  do  love  thee  dearly  ! 
Thou  hast  large  capacities  for  good  in  thy  strong,  pure 
heart  and  mind  !" 

Then  it  seemed  to  him  as  if  scales  had  fallen  from 
his  eyes  that  he  might  all  at  once  perceive  how  hard, 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF   FAUSTINA.  181 

selfish  and  sensuous  was  the  life  of  the  practical 
Romans,  and  what  wide  possibilities  of  purer,  higher, 
nobler  existence  might  be  for  him  and  other  men. 
Rome  herself  was  beginning  to  appear  to  him  but  as  a 
barbarian  compared  with  what  might  be,  even  as  the 
tribes  of  Gaul  and  of  Germania  seemed  barbarous 
when  compared  with  Rome  ;  except  that  the  compari 
son  between  the  barbarians  and  Rome  referred  to 
physical,  progress  and  intellectual  life  alone,  while  that 
to  which  Rome  was  like  a  barbarian  was  neither  intel 
lectual  nor  physical,  yet  what  it  was  he  did  not  clearly 
understand  ;  but  as  to  the  crystalline  chastity  of  that 
world  of  thought,  emotion,  purposes — in  which  both 
Dorcas  and  Epaphras  dwelt — the  centurion  discovered 
himself  to  be  but  a  barbarian. 

Then  once  more,  hand  in  hand,  bearing  their  lighted 
lamps,  the  twain  trod  through  the  long  galleries 
together,  and  once  more,  at  every  new  passage  which 
they  reached  and  sought  to  enter,  a  voice  of  one  unseen 
cried  out :  "  Walk  them  by  faith !"  and  Dorcas  sweetly 
answered:  "In  His  name  !"  and  so  they  went  on 
until  the  lighted  chapel  opened  in  their  path,  wherein 
many  had  already  assembled.  And  Dorcas  said  :  "  Wilt 
thou  not  enter  in  and  sit  with  me  ?  No  one  objecteth 
here  to  any  peaceful  visitor,  and  thou  wilt  learn  noth 
ing  that  can  injure  thee." 

Then  passed  he  with  her  into  the  chapel  and  they  sat 
together,  and  in  low  tones,  that  seemed  most  fitting  to 
the  place  and  the  surroundings,  talked  they  of  many 
things. 


182  I)  OH  CAS, 

And  while  the  congregation  was  assembling,  the 
the  centurion  observed  that  when  they  came  in,  one  by 
one,  or  two  by  two,  all  adult  persons,  and  some  even  of 
the  children,  stepped  quietly  into  an  alcove  made  in 
the  side  of  one  of  the  galleries,  where  was  a  table  hav 
ing  a  box  on  the  top  thereof  and  a  lamp  burning  above 
it,  and  in  a  moment  more  returned  and  took  their  seats. 
"Dorcas,"  said  he,  "what  ceremony  taketh  them  into 
that  place?" 

And  she  said  :  "We  Christians  make  a  weekly  offer 
ing  of  whatever  each  may  have  above  that  which  is 
necessary  for  himself  and  family,  and  this  goeth  into 
the  common  treasury,  for  the  common  good,  to  be 
applied  as  our  deacons,  or  stewards,  may  direct.  They 
are  making  their  offerings  now.  Therefore  we  pray  : 
'Give  us  our  daily  bread,'  which  prayer  would  be  but 
mockery  of  God  if  we  should  violate  the  law  of  Christ 
by  '  laying  up  treasures  in  our  private  storehouses  for 
future  use.'  We  Christians  live,  as  men  of  Rome  would 
say,  '  from  hand  to  mouth  ;'  but  the  common  church 
accumulates  for  all." 

"And  if  misfortune  overtake th  any  one,"  said  Mar- 
cellus,  "how  doth  he  live,  having  given  all  that  he  had 
unto  the  church  ?" 

"All  the  church  hath  is  his,"  said  Dorcas,  "accord 
ing  to  his  necessities.  So  that  among  us  those  who  are 
given  little  lack  nothing,  and  those  to  whom  much  is 
given  have  nothing  over  ;  but  there  is  enough,  and  to 
spare,  for  all." 

"  I  have   a  few   pieces  with  me,"   said   Marcellus  ; 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  183 

•'thinkest  thou  that  they  would  take  it  kindly  if  I  put 
them  in  the  box  ?" 

"  They  solicit  no  one,"  she  answered,  "  nor  have  they 
any  right  to  reject  the  offering  of  an}-  that  is  made 
with  hope  that  it  may  accomplish  good.  But  thou, 
centurion,''  she  added  with  a  kindly  smile,  "must  not 
forget  that,  when  thou  casteth  money  into  the  treasury, 
thou  art  aiding  the  despised  and  persecuted  cause  of 
Christ," 

For  an  instant  the  young  man's  cheek  burned  with 
an  angry  flush,  but  it  passed  ofF  as  quickly  as  it  came, 
and  he  quietly  went  forward  and  emptied  his  purse  into 
the  treasury,  and  then  resumed  his  seat  beside  her,  say 
ing  :  "  I  hope  that  even  the  pitiful  sum  I  had  with  me 
may  do  some  little  good." 

By  this  time  all  the  congregation  had  assembled,  and 
thereupon  the  presbyter  Epaphras  entered  into  the 
chapel,  and  seeing  Marcellus  there,  he  advanced  and 
kindly  greeted  him ;  and  having  taken  his  station  upon 
the  platform,  the  congregation  rose,  and  with  right  hand 
uplifted,  repeated  in  solemn  tones  the  declaration  of  their 
faith.  And  the  ceremonies  proceeded  as  upon  the  pre 
ceding  Sabbath,  except  that  there  was  no  Anastasis  of 
the  dead,  and  Epaphras  occupied  the  time  which  had 
been  consumed  by  that  service  upon  the  former  occasion 
by  a  short  address  or  "sermon,"  as  Dorcas  denomi 
nated  it. 

The  centurion  listened  to  the  first  Christian  sermon 
he  had  ever  heard  with  a  strange,  absorbing  interest. 
A  world  of  light  broke  in  upon  his  spirit  when  the  pres- 


184  DORCAS, 

byter  said  :  "  Ye  see,  therefore,  beloved,  that  there 
never  was,  and  never  can  be,  a  false  religion  in  the 
world,  inasmuch  as  all  religion  is  in  itself  only  the 
utterance  of  the  heart's  deathless  yearnings  for  the  one 
true  God,  after  whom  the  human  race  seeketh,  and 
whom  the  heathen  do  ignorantly  conceive  to  dwell  in 
the  bright  stars  above  us,  or  in  idols  of  wood  and 
stone,  which  are  the  workmanship  of  their  own  hands. 
And  this  honest,  universal,  but  mistaken  effort  of  sin- 
blinded  men  to  bestow  a  physical,  tangible  shape  and 
existence  upon  the  one  true  God  hath  filled  the  world 
with  idols — the  false  conceptions  and  human  represen 
tations  of  Him  that  is  invisible  except  unto  the  eye  of 
faith ;  that  is  a  spirit,  and  is  only  worshiped  truly  by 
those  that  worship  Him  in  spirit  and  in  truth  ;  whom 
our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  hath  revealed  to  them  that  love 
Him."  Because  from  the  worship  of  the  idolaters 
itself,  and  from  the  lessons  of  the  Platonic  philosophy 
then  current  in  the  city  of  Rome,  it  appeared  to  him 
with  almost  startling  vividness  that  if  the  one  God  of 
the  Christians  be  substituted  for  all  others,  and  the 
Christ  taken  as  the  fulfillment  of  Plato's  splendid 
vision  of  the  Divine  Man  that  was  to  instruct  men  in 
the  will  of  God  and  reconcile  them  to  His  ways,  all 
that  he  had  been  taught  to  regard  as  religion  would  be 
wonderfully  simplified,  and  this  very  simplicity  itself 
seemed  to  demonstrate  its  truth.  But  the  departing  of 
the  congregation  broke  the  thread  of  his  meditations, 
and  soon  all  others  had  gone  except  Epaphras,  Dorcas 
and  himself. 


CHAPTEK  XV. 

IN   WHICH   THERE   IS   SOME   TALK   OF   MARRIAGE. 

AFTER  the  conclusion  of  the  services  in  the  chapel 
in  the  rock,  Epaphras  said  to  Marcellus  :  "  I  rejoice, 
centurion,  to  see  thee  among  us  here  again,  and  hope 
that  thou  mayest  learn  to  love  our  simple  form  of  wor 
ship,  and  that  thou  wilt  never  find  aught  therein 
which  should  rightfully  subject  us  to  the  malediction  of 
good  men  or  of  righteous  laws  ?" 

"  If  all  Christians  be  such  as  thou  and  Dorcas,"  said 
the  centurion,  "I  would  gladly  learn  the  faith  which 
worketh  out  characters  so  perfect." 

"Thou  lovest  the  maiden,  then?"  said  Epaphras, 
striving  in  vain  to  conceal  his  agitation. 

"Yea,"  answered  Marcellus,  taking  the  girl's  hand 
in  his,  "  I  love  her  as  I  do  mine  own  life,  and  more  !" 
But  Epaphras  indicated  to  Dorcas  that  he  wished  to 
converse  with  the  centurion  alone,  and  so  the  maiden 
withdrew  to  the  women's  apartments. 

"And,  notwithstanding,"  said  Epaphras,  in  slow, 
deliberate  tones  that  seemed  to  place  an  emphasis  on 
every  word,  "  thou  didst  offer  unto  her  not  long  ago 
the  grossest  insult  that  a  Christian  maiden  can  re 
ceive."  The  young  centurion's  face  became  flushed 

and  troubled.    But  at  length  he  said  : 

185 


THE  DAUGHTER    OF  FAUSTINA.  187 

"  I  have  even  told  Dorcas  that  I  was  as  a  hrute,  or  a 
barbarian,  to  her,  and  she  knoweth  well  that  it  was  the 
barbarism  or  brutality  of  ignorance.  But  to  speak  the 
very  truth,  even  yet  I  do  not  understand  why  my  love 
for  her  was  a  thing  so  different  from  what  it  ought  to 
have  been,  and,  if  thou  canst  credit  me,  so  different 
from  what  now  it  is  !" 

"Didst  thou  not  know,  then,1'  said  Epaphras,  "that 
what  thou  calledst  love  without  marriage  is  unpardon 
able  sin  and  hopeless  degradation  to  every  Christian 
woman,  and  that  marriage  without  love  is  in  no 
respect  a  better  or  more  honorable  thing  ?" 

The  youth  flushed  vividly  ;  but  his  brave,  sincere 
nature  asserted  itself,  and  he  answered  by  a  simple, 
straightforward  statement  of  the  truth,  saj'ing  : 

"  Verily,  I  did  not.  I  call  to  witness  all  gods,  both 
thine  and  mine,  that  I  believed  and  know  that  nearly 
all  the  Koman  youth,  of  both  sexes,  do  believe  that 
such  love  as  I  did  offer  Dorcas  is  better  far  for  her,  or 
any  other  girl,  than  to  assume  the  burdens  and  the 
bonds  of  matrimony,  from  which  both  men  and  women 
in  Home  recoil  with  such  strong  loathing  that  we  have 
enacted  the  Julian  and  Papinean  laws,  and  other  laws,  to 
compel  the  unwilling  citizens  to  contract  marriages. 
O  gladly  would  I  take  Dorcas  to  be  my  wife  ;  but  I  did 
think  that  the  arrangement  I  proposed  to  make  was  far 
better,  both  for  her  and  me,  than  matrimony.  And, 
while  now  I  love  the  maiden  otherwise,  and  feel,  some 
how,  that  the  former  arrangement  is  not  a  fit  nor 
proper  one  for  her,  I  tell  thee,  Epaphras,  in  perfect 


188  DORCAS, 

truth,  that  I  cannot  understand  why  this  is  so  or  how 
it  happeneth  !" 

"That  I  will  even  tell  thee,"  answered  the  presby 
ter.  "It  is  because  thou  hast  begun  to  realize  the 
truth  that  ye  Komans  are  not  fit  to  be  true  husbands  or 
true  wives." 

"And  why  not  ?"  said  Marcellus.  "  There  is  no  finer 
race  of  beings  on  the  earth." 

"Because,"  said  the  presbyter,  "the  union  of  men 
and  women,  even  on  the  basis  of  physical  and  in 
tellectual  excellencies  alone,  is  but  a  commerce  of  more 
gifted  brutes,  and  is  no  real  marriage,  which  is  a  higher 
and  purer  relation  for  which  ye  Romans  are  not  fit, 
because  '  your  lasciviousness  and  unchastity  have  been 
so  notorious  for  centuries  that  when  the  emperor  sought 
to  reform  manners  by  the  Julian  law  your  wives  and 
mothers  did  not  hesitate  to  escape  the  legal  penalties 
of  adultery  by  exchanging  the  decent  stole  of  matron- 
hood  for  the  toga  of  the  avowed  courtesan,  to  whom  the 
law  did  not  apply.'  Ye  never  knew  what  a  true 
marriage  is.  'Ye  publicly  boast  that  ye  have  re 
nounced  marriage,  and  public  confidence  in  marriage 
and  the  family  tie  is  shaken  to  its  center ;'  and,  '  on  the 
other  hand,  the  women  themselves,  insulted  by  the 
neglect  of  the  other  sex,  and  exasperated  at  the  in 
feriority  of  their  position,  avenge  themselves  by  holding 
the  institution  of  legitimate  marriage  with  almost  equal 
aversion.  They  are  indignant  at  the  state  of  servitude 
to  which  it  binds  them,  the  state  of  legal  dependence 
in  which  it  keeps  them  ;  for  it  leaves  them  without 


THE  DAUGHTER    OF  FAUSTINA.  189 

rights,  even  without  the  enjoyment  of  their  own 
property  ;  it  reduces  them  to  the  state  of  mere  children, 
or  rather  transfers  them  from  the  power  of  their  parent 
to  that  of  their  husbands.  They  continue  through  life, 
in  spite  of  the  mockery  of  respect  with  which  your  laws 
surround  them,  things  rather  than  persons;  things  that 
can  be  sold,  transferred  backwards  and  forwards  from 
one  master  to  another  for  the  sake  of  their  dowery,  or 
even  for  their  powers  of  child-bearing.'  Ye  degrade 
and  despise  your  women  so  much  that,  long  ago,  the 
Censor  Metellus,  in  your  august  senate,  said  :  '  Could 
we  exist  without  wives  at  all,  doubtless  we  should  all  rid 
ourselves  of  the  plague  they  are  to  us  ;  since,  however, 
nature  hath  decreed  that  we  cannot  dispense  with  the 
affliction  it  is  better  to  bear  it  manfully,  and  rather  look 
to  the  permanent  conservation  of  the  state  than  to 
our  own  transient  gratification ' ;  and  Augustus,  a 
hundred  years  afterwards,  recited  this  invective  in 
your  senate,  and  ye  had  to  resort  to  stringent  laws  to 
compel  your  citizens  to  marry.  And  ye  despised  women 
so  thoroughly  that  the  most  of  them  were  destroyed  in 
infancy,  and  those  who  survived  were  not  esteemed 
worthy  to  have  a  prenomen — left  even  nameless.  And 
it  resulted  from  this  degradation  of  the  sex  that  your 
women,  uninstructed,  ill-treated,  half-employed,  threw 
themselves  with  all  the  passionate  self-abandonment  of 
their  weaker  natures  into  the  worship  of  Anubis  and 
Astarte,  and  all  the  libidinous  sensualism  of  Egypt 
and  of  the  East ;  and  as  ye  became  more  and  more 
degraded  the  men  followed  them  until  your  whole 


190  DORCAS, 

social  life-path  became  utterly  infamous  and  unclean. 
So  it  hath  been  throughout  the  world  ;  women  are 
thoroughly  despised,  and  the  wife  is  everywhere  a  slave. 
But  our  Saviour  Christ,  that  hath  addressed  His  gospel  tc 
each  individual  and  not  to  any  sect  or  nation,  and  hath 
devolved  upon  each  one  for  himself  a  personal  respon 
sibility  that  implies,  in  the  very  definition  of  it,  personal 
rights  as  well  as  duties — a  responsibility  which  is  neces 
sarily  and  eternally  antagonistic  to  all  slavery — hath 
also  emancipated  the  wife  from  the  condition  of  a  slave, 
and  hath  elevated  her  to  the  equal  station  of  a  com 
panion,  counselor  and  friend  by  ordaining  monogamic 
marriage  to  be  a  sacrament  of  religion,  based  upon  mu 
tual  affection  and  consent,  and  by  prohibiting  divorce. 
So  thou  must  see,  centurion,  that  the  love  of  a  Christian 
for  his  wife  is  quite  another  thing  than  the  unlicensed 
passion  of  a  Roman,  and  than  the  contract,  founded 
upon  interest  and  expediency,  by  which  a  wife  is  taken. 
Thou  seest  clearly  that  a  Christian  marriage  sanctifies 
sexhood,  elevates  women,  and  renders  the  family  tie  a 
sacred  and  indissoluble  one  that  forms  the  basis  of 
society.  And  if  thou  wilt  seriously  consider  all  these 
things  thou  canst  not  fail  to  understand  what  a  pure 
and  holy  thing  is  that  which  Dorcas  calleth  '  love,'  nor 
of  what  manner  of  love  he  should  be  capable  that 
deserveth  to  have  her  for  his  wife." 

Then  the  centurion  answered  :  u  I  am  a  very  young 
man,  and  have  never  had  inclination  or  occasion  to 
examine  many  of  the  matters  of  which  thou  speakest, 
and  I  feel  rather  than  understand  the  meaning  of  tin 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  191 

words.  But  I  perceive  clearly  that  thou  knowest  how 
to  lay  thy  heavy  hand  upon  every  sore  place  that 
afflicteth  the  Roman  body  politic.  If  any  man  douht 
that  the  Romans  themselves  comprehend  the  vast  evil 
of  war,  slavery,  intemperance,  usury,  and  luxury,  a 
knowledge  of  the  laws  continually  enacted,  and  re- 
enacted  so  ineffectually,  would  certainly  remove  his 
doubts.  But  while  the  Romans  know  and  regret  the 
terrible  decadence  of  all  public  and  social  integrity  and 
virtue,  they  know  not  any  statute  or  custom  that  can 
arrest  its  downward  progress  ;  and  so  we  live  as  we  can 
under  the  laws  and  customs  which  have  grown  upon  us. 
Dost  thou  know  any  law,  Epaphras,  that  might  accom 
plish  the  various  reformations  contemplated  by  such 
enactments  as  the  Julian  law,  the  Oppian  and  Yaco- 
nian  laws,  and  the  law  of  Augustus  ?" 

"Nay,  verily  !"  replied  the  presbyter;  "no  human 
statute  can  remedy  these  evils,  or  even  reach  the  seat 
of  the  universal  malady.  The  larger  wisdom  of  our 
Saviour  Christ  is  manifested  by  the  fact  that  lie  did 
know  it  was  a  vainer  thing  than  beating  of  the  wind 
to  enact  any  such  laws — the  most  perfect  code  of 
which  the  Jews  had  tested  for  long  centuries — and 
hence,  the  divine  truth,  by  which  lie  purposeth  to 
accomplish  the  regeneration  of  mankind,  never  assumed 
the  shape  of  a  statute  to  govern  Christians  or  Jews, 
Greeks  or  barbarians  ;  was  never  confirmed  by  the  in 
fliction  of  any  temporal  penalties,  but  is  addressed  to 
each  individual  man  as  man.  He  constantly  saith 
'every  man,'  'any  man,'  'whosoever  will;'  and  His 


192  DORCAS, 

gospel  is  not  addressed  to  any  sect,  corporation,  govern 
ment,  or  class — social  or  political — but  to  the  indi 
vidual  ;  and  no  mortal  enginery  on  earth  can  either 
compel  the  individual  to  do,  or  to  leave  undone,  what 
is  essential  to  his  becoming  a  Christian.  So,  centurion, 
them  seest  that  while  no  man  can  reform  and  regenerate 
the  Roman  world,  and  is,  therefore  not  responsible  for 
that  it  is  not  done,  any  can,  if  he  will,  our  Lord  help 
ing  him,  reform,  regenerate,  and  purify  his  own  heart 
and  life,  and  he  is  held  to  be  personally  accountable  for 
his  failure  to  do  so.  The  Kingdom  of  Heaven,  the 
Church  of  Christ,  to-day,  unseen  and  unknown,  ex 
tends  throughout  the  empire,  and  even  further  than  the 
power  of  Rome  hath  ever  gone  ;  but  the  faith  which 
justifies  the  individual  is  personal  and  peculiar  to  each 
man,  and  is  beyond  the  reach  of  any  human  statute. 
But  it  is  the  Sabbath  day,  and  I,  and  also  this  young 
deaconess,  Dorcas,  have  yet  many  duties  to  discharge, 
so  that  thou  mayest  go  in  peace,  and  come  again  upon 
the  Seventh  day  hence,  if  such  be  thy  desire." 

Then  the  centurion  and  Epaphras  saluted  each  other 
with  great  kindness,  and  Dorcas  having  been  recalled, 
she  and  Marcellus  took  up  each  a  lamp,  and,  hand  in 
hand,  they  twain  trod  the  long  galleries  once  more  until 
they  reached  that  one  which  led  on  to  the  entrance  by 
which  the  young  man  came.  And  as  they  walked  on 
the  centurion  said  :  "What  is  the  Sabbath,  Dorcas  ?" 

And  she  answered:  "It  is  the  Seventh  day  upon 
which  our  Lord  arose  from  the  dead  after  that  He  had 
been  crucified  under  Pontius  Pilate  ;  and  every  Sabbath 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  193 

we  Christians  celebrate  His  resurrection  in  the  commu 
nion,  as  he  commanded." 

"  Arose  from  the  dead  after  that  he  had  been  cru 
cified  !"  said  Marcellus,  amazedly. 

"•  Yea  !  Surely  thou  canst  not  think  it  an  incredible 
thing  that  God  should  raise  Him  from  the  dead,  when 
thou  hast  seen  with  thine  own  eyes  the  Anastasis  of 
our  brother  Chads  ?" 

"  That  is  most  true,"  said  Marcellus.  "  But,  Dorcas, 
are  there  no  books  containing  the  history  of  these 
tilings  ?  Epaphras  talks  to  me  most  kindly  and 
learnedly,  but  somewhat  too  much  with  reference  to 
large  questions  of  social  and  political  truth.  But  I 
would  fain  know  more  of  this  same  Jesus — more  that  is 
personal  to  Him  ;  more  of  what  He  said,  and  did,  and 
felt,  and  thought,  and  suffered  1  Are  there  such  books, 
Dorcas,  anywhere  ?" 

And  a  glad  light  glorified  her  speaking  countenance 
as  she  replied  : 

"Yea,  thou  most  dear  Marcellus.  I  will  obtain  for 
thee  by  next  Sabbath  the  four  Gospels  and  the  Acts 
of  the  Apostles,  and  thou  mayest  read  the  holy  Scrip 
tures  for  thyself. ' ' 

"And,  Dorcas,  what  is  it  to  be  a  deaconess,  as 
Epaphras  said  thou  art  V" 

"It  is  to  aid  in  caring  for  the  chapel,  and  in  the 
preparation  of  the  bread  and  wine,  and  to  distribute 
to  the  women  of  our  community  out  of  the  treasury, 
according  as  each  hath  need,  either  permanently  or  by 
reason  of  some  temporary  necessity." 


194  DORCAS, 

"And  thy  parents,  Dorcas,  where  are  they  ?"  asked 
Marcellus. 

"•Both  suffered  martyrdom  for  the  faith  of  Jesus 
when  I  was  yet  in  infancy." 

"  Ah  !  I  remember  to  have  heard  thee  say  they  died 
when  thou  wast  very  young,  but  thou  didst  not  say 
how.  Both  martyrs !  Dorcas,  dost  thou  not  hate 
Rome  and  the  Emperor,  and  every  Roman,  for  this 
cruel  wrong  ?" 

"Nay,  nay,  centurion!  Hast  thou  not  heard  us 
pray  for  our  enemies,  and  for  the  Emperor  and  all 
others  in  authority !  I  pity  and  forgive  them !  I 
doubt  not  that  just  men  even  have  persecuted  us  in  all 
good  conscience,  ignorantly,  as  did  Saul  of  Tarsus,  of 
whom  thou  mayest  read  in  the  beautiful  parchments  I 
shall  get  for  thee." 

"It  is  most  strange  and  moving,"  cried  Marcellus, 
"Tacitus  saith  that  the  Christians  are  'full  of  hatred 
for  the  human  race. '  Yet  I  see  that  ye  Christians  hate 
no  one,  and  even  pray  for  those  who  persecute  you  !" 

They  walked  on  in  silence,  the  centurion  almost  op 
pressed  with  meditations  upon  the  new  and  wonderful 
life  that  was  slowly  revealing  itself  to  his  astonished 
intellect,  and  upon  the  more  wonderful  changes  that 
seemed  to  be  in  progress  in  the  depths  of  his  own 
nature  ;  and  the  young  girl  watched  him  with  patient 
love  and  hope.  And  when  they  had  reached  the  gal 
lery  which  she  had  already  named  "Marcellus  Way," 
she  lifted  her  glad  face  to  his  saying  :  "  Kiss  me,  love, 
and  go  in  peace." 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  195 

The  youth  saluted  her  with  a  respect  and  loving 
kindness  that  seemed  to  him  new,  strange  and  exquisite, 
and  as  he  wended  his  way  on  to  the  upper  world  the 
fullness  of  his  heart  uttered  its  joy  in  low  and  loving 
words  :  "  There  is  none  like  her !  There  is  none ! 
There  is  no  love  like  mine  in  all  the  world !  It  is  a 
new  fire  stolen  from  heaven  most  blessed,  warm  and 
pure,  such  as  no  Koman  hath  ever  known  before.  It  is 
not  in  the  sweet  verse  of  Sappho,  and  Hesiod's  perfect 
melodies  know  naught  of  it !  Nor  breathes  it  out  of 
any  music  of  Anacreon's  lyre  !  That  which  Ovid  and 
Tibullus  sing  of  love  is  but  licentiousness  compared 
with  it,  and  compared  with  it  the  finest  odes  of  Horace 
are  unclean,  dead  and  cold  !  For  there  is  none  like  her 
in  all  the  world — not  one  !" 


CHAPTEE  XVI. 

IK  WHICH  ETJSEBIUS  OFFERETH   THE   SWADDLING- 
BANDS   UNTO   THE   CHURCH. 

AFTER  that  embassay  which  went  out  of  Rome 
secretly  to  wait  upon  Constantine  at  Lutetia,  and  to 
solicit  him  to  march  into  Italy  and  free  them  from  the 
tyranny  of  Maxentius,  had  separated  at  the  foot  of  the 
Alps,  as  hath  already  been  narrated,  those  who  were  to 
return  to  the  city  did  successfully  perform  their  jour 
ney  ;  and  likewise  those  who  were  to  return  to  Lutetia 
to  communicate  to  Constantine  those  things  which  had 
been  made  known  by  Eusebius,  arrived  safely  and 
speedily.  And  Constantine  gladly  received  them,  and 
having  been  fully  advised  of  all  that  Eusebius  had  de 
clared,  he  dismissed  those  deputies  to  Rome  again  with 
instructions  to  inform  the  patricians,  senators  and 
Christians  who  were  moving  in  the  matter,  "That 
never,  either  in  Britain  or  in  the  West,  under  the 
government  of  his  father  nor  under  his  own,  had  the 
Christians  been  persecuted  ;  that  on  the  contrary, 
both  from  the  accounts  of  them  which  Pliny  had  given 
to  Trajan,  and  from  all  that  he  had  learned  concerning 
them  from  other  sources,  he  had  formed  a  very  favor 
able  opinion  of  the  Christians,  and  had  great  regard 

for  Jesus  Christ,  of  whom,  indeed,  he  had  long  desired 
197 


198  DORCAS, 

to  know  more,  but  had  hitherto  been  prevented  by  the 
constant  pressure  of  public  affairs  ;  that  if  the  Chris- 
tains  should  be  able  and  willing  to  give  him  any  effec 
tual  aid  in  consolidating  the  empire,  and  in  preventing 
the  devastation  of  Italy  by  a  protracted  civil  war,  he 
would  guarantee  to  them  entire  freedom  in  the  public 
exercise  of  their  religion  ;  that  an  embassy  from  their 
bishops,  or  from  the  churches,  would  be  granted  safe 
conduct  and  kind  usage  if  they  desired  to  confer  with 
him  in  regard  to  these  things ;  and  that  he  did  not 
desire  declamations,  which  might  mean  much  or  little, 
but  accurate  information,  whereby  he  would  be  enabled 
to  judge  for  himself  of  their  ability  to  render  effective 
aid,  and  proper  assurances  of  their  willingness  to  do 
so." 

And  having  dismissed  them  with  this  message,  Con- 
stantine  so  effectually  furthered  them  upon  their  jour 
ney  that  they,  too,  safely  arrived  at  Rome  only  a  few 
days  after  the  return  of  those  with  whom  Emebius  had 
come.  And  the  message  of  the  emperor  having  been 
communicated  by  those  who  brought  it  to  the  patricians 
and  senators  who  were  transacting  the  business,  they 
met  together  secretly,  and  had  Eusebius  come  to  them, 
whom  they  informed  fully,  and  commissioned  to  lay 
open  the  matter  to  the  churches,  and  ascertain  both  the 
opinion  of  the  Christians  concerning  it,  and,  also,  the 
facts  about  which  Constantino  sought  to  be  informed. 
And  thereupon  Melchiades,  the  Bishop  at  Rome,  in 
vited  the  presbyters  in  the  city,  and  bishops  and  pres 
byters  throughout  all  Italy,  to  assemble  upon  a  day 


THE  DAUGHTER    OF  FAUSTINA.  199 

named  at  the  chapel  in  the  catacombs  to  consider  of  the 
things  proposed. 

And  at  the  appointed  time  they  assembled  secretly  in 
the  chapel  of  Epaphras  to  the  number  of  about  three 
hundred  ;  and  the  Roman  bishop  having  called  the  as 
sembly  to  order,  first  of  all  stated  to  them  clearly  and 
perspicuously  the  business  upon  which  they  had  been 
summoned,  and  afterward  they  united  in  prayer  to 
God  that  His  Spirit  might  so  guide  their  deliberations 
that  their  action  should  be  for  the  glory  of  God  and 
for  the  good  of  the  common  church.  And,  therefore, 
the  bishop  said  : 

"  If  any  one  hath  counsel  to  offer,  let  him  speak." 

Then  many  gave  their  opinions  ;  many  asked  for  fur 
ther  information  ;  many  suggested  difficulties  and  ob 
jections  ;  and  little  by  little  the  business  was  explored 
to  the  bottom,  and  gradually-  the  assembly  became 
divided  in  sentiment  upon  the  very  core  of  the  whole 
question  into  two  parties,  whereof  Eusebius  led  one 
party,  and  Epaphras,  the  presbyter,  led  the  other. 

"It  is  agreed  upon  common  consent,"  said  Eusebius, 
"  both  from  the  character  of  the  Emperor  Constantine 
and  from  the  fact  that  no  persecution  of  Christians 
hath  been  permitted  by  him,  or  by  his  father,  that  we 
may  safely  rely  upon  his  pledge  to  protect  the  church 
upon  the  conditions  stated.  Ye  know,  brethren,  that 
from  the  days  in  which  our  Lord  tabernacled  in  flesh, 
even  until  this  hour,  the  church  hath  been  bleeding  at 
every  pore.  Ten  different  times,  under  ten  different 
emperors,  persecution  hath  taken  the  form  of  laws 


200  DORCAS, 

for  the  destruction  of  Christianity,  and  the  followers 
of  Jesus  have  been  tried  beyond  all  human  endurance. 
The  question,  therefore,  in  brief,  is  simply  whether  the 
church  shall  give  aid  to  Constantino  for  the  recovery  of 
his  rightful  heritage,  in  exchange  for  his  imperial  pro 
tection,  and  so  be  enabled  to  come  forth  into  the  broad 
light  of  day,  and  proclaim,  without  fear  or  molestation, 
the  gospel  of  our  Lord  !  Or  whether  she  shall  contu 
maciously  reject  proffered  peace  and  protection,  and 
thereby  justify  the  accusation  of  the  pagans  that  we 
Christians  are  inspired  with  hatred  of  the  human  race, 
and,  as  a  natural  consequence,  continue  to  suffer  from 
the  hatred  and  persecutions  of  the  world,  which  have 
been  so  grievous  ever  since  Diocletian  issued  the  edicts 
for  our  destruction  in  the  years  303  and  304,  which 
hard  laws  the  present  Emperor  Maxentius  strictly  en- 
forceth  everywhere  ;  so  that  neither  at  home,  nor  on 
the  way,  nor  even  here  beneath  the  surface  of  the 
earth  hath  any  Christian  assurance  of  his  life. 

"  When  I  think  of  how  the  church  must  triumph  under 
the  imperial  protection  —  how  in  place  of  being  out 
cast,  persecuted  and  despised,  she  would  at  once  become 
honorable  and  respectable  in  the  eyes  of  the  heathen  ; 
when  I  think  of  what  vast  opportunities  for  greater 
good  the  emperor's  favor  will  afford,  it  seemeth  to 
me  that  it  would  be  mere  madness  and  fanaticism  to 
reject  these  overtures  of  peace  and  protection,  and 
wilfully  cast  aside  the  honor,  wealth,  power  and  glory 
which  the  long  and  sorely  persecuted  church  must 
begin  to  gather  as  the  fruits  of  the  proposed  alliance  !" 


THE  DAUGHTER    OF  FAUSTINA.          201 

To  him  Epaphras  thus  replied  :  "  Brethren,  I  marvel 
greatly  that  any  Christian  bishop  should  even  speak  to 
you  of  earthly  honor,  wealth,  power  and  glory ;  and 
marvel  more  that  he  should  advise  you  to  follow  after 
all  these  things,  for  which,  indeed,  the  heathen  seek. 
Will  some  one  tell  me  what  business  we  Christians  have 
with  any  '  honor  '  except  that  of  our  Lord  ?  With  any 
'  wealth '  except  the  unsearchable  riches  of  Christ  ? 
With  any  '  power '  except  the  power  of  the  Holy  Ghost  ? 
With  any  '  glory  '  except  to  glory  in  the  cross  of  Jesus 
Christ  our  Lord,  by  which  we  are  crucified  unto  the 
world  and  the  world  unto  us  ? 

"  They  propose  an  'alliance '  between  the  church,  the 
bride  of  Jesus,  and  the  Roman  Empire.  Let  us  con 
sider  what  is  involved  in  this  proposed  blending  of 
light  and  darkness ;  this  concord  between  Belial  and 
Christ. 

"  So  far  as  spiritual  truth  is  concerned,  we  must  blend 
the  faith  of  Christ  with  that  of  pagan  Rome — a  thing 
impossible  for  Christian  men  to  do — or  Constantino 
must  subvert  the  whole  vast  machinery  of  heathen  law 
and  religion,  and  I  ask  you  to  consider  whether  that  is 
possible  for  him. 

"So  far  as  the  socialogy  and  politics  of  the  kingdom  of 
Heaven  is  concerned,  either  the  church  must  abandon 
the  gospel  of  Christ  and  be  conformed  unto  the  world, 
or  else  the  Romans  must  subvert  the  empire  before  any 
such  alliance  can  be  possible  !  Unjust  wars,  prosecuted 
for  gain  and  conquest  through  the  four  quarters  of  the 
world,  are  the  chief  glory  of  Rome,  imbedded  in  her 


202  DORCAS, 

laws  and  customs,  in  her  traditions  and  religion.  But 
ye  all  do  know  that  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  hath  for 
bidden  Christians  to  bear  arms  at  all,  and  ye  know  that 
from  the  sorrowful  night  in  which  Peter  smote  the 
high-priest's  servant  and  cut  off  an  ear,  for  which  our 
Lord  rebuked  him,  no  Christian,  and  no  body  of  Chris 
tians,  hath  ever  lifted  up  a  carnal  weapon,  even  in  self- 
defense.  How  can  these  antagonistic  principles  of 
action  unite  ?  Will  the  empire  abolish  war  ?  or  can  the 
church  consent  to  see  her  redeemed  sons  enrolled 
among  the  butchers  and  stabbers,  paid  and  trained,  to 
murder  other  men  for  whom  also  our  Saviour  died  ? 

"  Ye  know  also  that  the  greater  part  of  the  people  of 
the  empire  and  of  Italy,  and  of  Rome  especially,  are 
slaves,  and  that  the  slave-code  is  rooted  in  the  laws, 
customs,  traditions,  and  religion  of  the  empire.  But  ye 
also  know  that  Jesus  teaches  the  inevitable  personal 
responsibility  of  every  man— a  responsibility  based  as 
much  upon  rights  for  man  as  upon  duties — a  truth 
which  is,  logically  and  spiritually,  the  antithesis  of  that 
enslaved  condition  in  which  our  Lord's  advent  found 
the  human  race  ;  ye  know  that  under  the  power  of  the 
Holy  Ghost  slavery  hath  faded  just  in  the  ratio  that  the 
church  hath  triumphed,  because  Jesus  promised  that  the 
truth  should  make  us  free,  and  the  liberty  of  the  gospel 
is  a  charter  of  freedom  to  the  slave.  How  can  there  be 
concord  or  alliance  between  this  gospel  and  the  Koman 
slave-code  ?  Dare  ye  to  seal  with  the  precious  blood  of 
your  crucified  Redeemer  a  compact  giving  the  sanction 
of  His  church  to  human  slavery  ?  Or  think  ye  that 


THE    TWAIN    TROD    THROUGH    THE    LOXG    GALLERIES 
TOGETHER. — p.    181. 


204  DORCAR, 

the  ruling  classes  of  the  empire  will  voluntarily  abolish 
this  inhuman  wrong,  and  of  their  own  accord  surrender 
the  profit  which  they  have  by  the  ownership  of  men, 
and  the  convenience  and  consideration  they  derive 
therefrom  ? 

"Ye  know  that  the  laws,  customs  and  religion  of  the 
empire  are  founded  upon  the  false  and  cruel,  social  and 
political  distinctions  which  grow,  like  poison-weeds, 
out  of  accidents  of  rank,  prerogative,  and  wealth ! 
These  are  the  real  gods  of  the  idolaters ;  these  the 
rewards  which  Mammon  offers  to  his  votaries  !  But  ye 
also  know  that  our  Lord  Jesus  required  all  such  dis 
tinctions  to  be  abolished  among  all  those  who  believe  ; 
that  they  may  be  brethren,  that  they  may  call  no  man 
master,  since  one  is  their  master,  even  Christ,  and, 
therefore,  to  hold  all  property  by  a  communal  title,  and 
not  by  any  individual  right  or  claim.  Ye  know  that 
when  some,  through  want  of  faith,  endeavored  to  gain 
admission  into  the  church,  and  at  the  same  time  to 
evade  the  binding  obligation  of  that  fundamental  law 
of  the  kingdon  which  required  them  to  put  their  private 
wealth  into  the  common  fund,  Peter  declared  that  their 
crime  was  an  attempt  to  deceive  the  Holy  Ghost  and  to 
defraud  the  church,  and  the  wrath  of  God  fell  on  them  so 
that  they  died  ;  and  ye  know  that  of  all  the  countless 
idols  of  the  heathen  our  Lord  denounces  one  by  name — 
Mammon.  To  worship  whom  is  only  to  adopt  social 
and  political  s}-stems  which  recognize  and  maintain 
individual  right  to  acquire,  hold  and  transmit  property, 
thereby  making  all  pagan  governments  inure  to  the 


THE  DAUGHTER   OF  FAUSTINA.  205 

benefit  of  the  few  and  to  the  oppression  of  the  many, 
and  rendering  true  liberty  and  religion  impossible  for 
the  masses  of  mankind.  How  can  there  be  alliance 
between  Christ's  common  church  and  the  Roman 
Empire  ?  Think  ye  that  unconverted  men  will  transfer 
their  riches  to  the  church,  and  consecrate  unrighteous 
mammon  to  the  good  of  all,  in  order  to  gain  admittance 
thereto  ?  Verily,  a  camel  shall  sooner  pass  through  a 
needle's  eye  !  Or,  will  ye  dare  with  sacrilegious  hands 
to  seal  a  compact  binding  the  church  to  give  her  sanc 
tion  to  property — laws  directly  antagonistic  to  the 
fundamental  law  of  the  church — laws  that  practically 
make  riches  God '? 

"  If  ye  shall  induce  the  church  of  Christ  to  adopt  and 
endorse  the  social,  political  and  religious  system  of 
Rome,  that  is  simply  to  abandon  Jesus,  and  there  are 
many  who  will  refuse,  at  any  hazard,  to  follow  you  one 
step !  If  ye  shall  induce  the  church  to  make  a  cove 
nant  with  Constantine  that  he  will  shove  pagan  gods 
aside,  and  substitute  for  them  a  secularized  church, 
bearing  the  same  relation  to  the  empire  that  paganism 
now  sustains,  that  is  only  to  set  up  the  Anti-Christ;  and 
Constantine  is  he  ! 

"Moreover,  brethren,  ye  all  know  that  to  abandon 
communism  of  believers  is  to  surrender,  also,  the  thau- 
maturgical  powers  which  are  appurtenant  to  the  com 
mon  church  only,  and  can  only  be  exercised  for  the 
common  good  of  all  Christians  ;  and  the  ecclesiasticism 
which  ye  shall  have  substituted  for  the  gospel  will  be  a 
human  institution  that  must  be  perpetuated  by  only 


206  DORCAS, 

human  agencies  or  fail  ;  because  when  ye  accept  this 
allowance  ye  abandon  all  of  the  gospel  except  the  single 
spiritual  truth  of  justification  by  faith,  which  truth 
alone  may  save  some  souls  of  men,  but  never  can  con 
vert  mankind. 

"  I,  therefore,  counsel  that  we  at  once  decree  that 
the  church  cannot  make  an  alliance  with  any  temporal 
government  without  abandoning  the  gospel  of  Christ, 
and  that  this  we  will  not  do,  preferring  rather,  if  need 
be,  the  sword,  the  fagots  and  the  cross,  as  from  the 
beginning  our  fathers  have  always  done." 

Then  a  clamor  arose,  many  crying  out:  "It  is 
enough  !"  "  Take  a  vote !"  "  We  will  die  for  Christ, 
but  will  not  betray  him  !"  "  It  is  too  much  to  pay  for 
peace !" 

And  Eusebius,  well  seeing  that  if  a  vote  were  taken 
then,  the  proposition  of  Epaphras  would  prevail  by 
the  common  consent,  arose,  and,  with  his  wonder 
fully  persuasive  voice  and  manner,  spoke  as  follows  : 
"  Brethren,  if,  indeed,  the  acceptance  of  the  emperor's 
proposal  should  involve  any  such  consequences  as  have 
been  urged  by  the  most  pious  and  learned  Epaphras, 
I  freely  admit  that  we  ought  at  once  to  reject  it.  But 
if  we  be  agreed  that  we  cannot  accept  this  proposition, 
•ye  all  see  that  there  certainly  can  be  no  need  to  affront 
the  haughty  and  powerful  Constantino  by  rough  or  pre 
cipitate  action.  On  the  contrary,  as  far  as  in  us  lies 
we  should  endeavor  to  live  peacefully  with  all  men.  I, 
therefore,  counsel  that  the  matters  be  not  finally  deter 
mined  at  this  time,  but  rather  that  we  leave  it  undeter- 


THE  DAUGHTER   OF  FAUSTINA.  207 

mined  (which,  indeed,  seemeth  sufficient  to  accomplish 
all  that  the  excellent  Epaphras  desireth),  and  that  in 
the  meantime  we  take  proper  steps  both  to  furnish  the 
emperor  with  the  information  which  he  has  very  kindly 
and  courteously  desired,  and  also  to  learn  with  precise- 
ness  just  what  he  would  require  of  the  church,  and 
that  we  carefully  consider  how,  and  to  what  extent, 
that  which  he  may  really  desire  can  affect  the  spread  of 
gospel  truth.  And  I  counsel  this  all  the  more  earnestly, 
brethren,  because  I  have  both  seen  and  conversed  with 
the  man  Constantine,  and  believe  that  he  is  intellectu 
ally  a  greater  man  than  any  other  Roman.  He  is  most 
temperate,  studious  and  chaste.  He  is  very  favorably 
inclined  to  our  holy  faith,  and  we  should  not  quench 
the  smoking  flax.  Let  us,  therefore,  delay  ;  and  if  we 
should  find  it  proper  to  reject  all  overtures  that  may  be 
made,  let  us  so  act  as  that  the  emperor  may  perceive 
our  refusal  to  be  of  conscience  only,  and  not  of  pride, 
hatred  or  uncharitableness.  For  I  yet  hope  to  see  this 
emperor  a  Christian." 

Then,  cried  out  Epaphras  in  a  loud  voice:  "Thou 
knowest  that  no  emperor  can  be  a  Christian  ;  for  a 
Christian  must  be  the  brother,  not  the  legal  master,  of 
other  Christians.  The  church  can  recognize  no  king 
but  Christ!" 

But,  nevertheless,  the  moderate  counsel  of  Eusebius 
prevailed,  and  Christ  suffered  again  from  the  unchris 
tian  spirit  of  compromise  which  made  the  Procurator 
Pontius  Pilate  seek  to  wash  his  own  hands  clean  of 
the  innocent  blood  I 


208  DORCAS, 

And  so  the  bishop  was  instructed  to  send  an  em 
bassy  to  Constantino,  with  accurate  information  of  the 
numerical  strength  and  other  resources  of  the  church  ; 
and  to  learn  with  exactness  what  might  be  those  con 
ditions  on  which  a  heathen  emperor  would  take  under 
his  protection  the  church  of  the  living  God. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 

IN  WHICH   THE  BARBARIAN   IS   CIVILIZED. 

MEANTIME  the  centurion  had  made  his  weekly  visit 
to  the  catacombs,  and  Dorcas  had  given  to  him  beauti 
ful  parchments  containing  the  Four  Gospels  and  the 
Acts  of  the  Apostles,  and  the  young  man  had  read  them 
over  and  over  again  with  a  strange,  absorbing  interest, 
and  especially  the  very  words  of  Jesus,  until  he  could 
have  written  out  from  memory  almost  every  passage 
contained  therein.  He  desired  to  understand  precisely 
what  Christianity,  as  Christ  Himself  propounded  it, 
really  contained,  and  believed  that  he  had  done  so. 

After  the  services  were  ended  upon  the  following 
Sabbath,  and  he  and  Epaphrasand  Dorcas  had  remained 
in  the  chapel  after  the  withdrawal  of  the  congregation, 
as  was  their  pleasant  custom,  Marcellus  handed  back 
the  parchments  to  Dorcas,  saying:  "I  thank  thee 
much,  dear  Dorcas,  for  the  privilege  of  perusing  these 
wonderful  books,  which  I  have  read  a  number  of  times 
over  with  continual  delight  and  interest.  Somehow 
the  heart  ever  groweth  more  warm  unto  this  sinless, 
loving  Nazarene,  and  the  mind  seems  to  be  exalted  and 
chastened  by  reading  what  these  Gospels  say  of  Him.  I 
desire  to  have  a  copy  thereof  made  for  mine  own  use, 
and  if  it  is  permitted  to  do  so,  I  will  bring  hither  the 

parchments  ;  and  wilt  thou  aid  nie  ?" 

209 


210  DOE  CAS, 

"Nay,  friend,"  said  Dorcas.  "These  are  even 
thine  ;  for  with  mine  own  hand  began  I  long  ago  to 
transcribe  them  for  thee.  Nevertheless,  thou  hadst 
best  leave  them  here  until  this  prosecuting  spirit  of  the 
Romans  shall  exhaust  itself,  as  it  would  be  dangerous 
to  have  them  found  in  thy  possession." 

"  And  thou  didst  write  these  books,"  he  said,  looking 
at  the  voluminous  manuscript,  "  for  me  ?  Ah,  Dorcas, 
thou  canst  not  know  how  sacred  thy  hand  hath  ren 
dered  them  in  my  eyes." 

Then  said  Dorcas:  "It  was  a  labor  of  love,  Mar- 
cellus,  because  I  love  the  word ;  and  also  because  it 
was  for  thee.  I  have  made  other  copies  beside  this, 
also,  of  these  books,  and  of  all  the  Epistles,  and  of  the 
Revelation  ;  and  when  I  did  copy  the  Medea  for  the 
Vice-Prefect  Varus,  one  day  I  brought  hither  the  first 
skin  of  those  parchments,  and  did  write  thereon  an 
illuminated  initial  letter,  such  as  thou  seest  in  thy 
Gospels  here,  and  Varus  when  he  saw  it  was  much  grati 
fied  and  said  to  me  :  '  Child,  it  is  beautiful !  Who 
taught  thee  that  ?'  And  I  did  laugh,  but  did  not 
answer  him." 

Then  said  Marcellus  :  "  Have  ye  other  sacred  books  ? 
Do  they  contain  more  full  accounts  of  Jesus  ?  Or  is  all 
that  He  taught  and  did,  the  whole  of  His  system,  fully 
set  forth  in  the  simple  and  beautiful  parchment  I  have 
read  ?" 

Then  said  Epaphras  :  "  There  is  nothing  in  Christian 
ity  that  must  be  believed  or  done  that  is  not  fully 
taught  in  the  Four  Gospels  and  the  Acts.  True,  we 


HE   WENT    FORWARD    AND    EMPTIED    HIS    PURSE    INTO 
TUE    TREASURY. — p.    183. 


212  DORCAS, 

have  the  sacred  writings  of  the  Jews,  beginning  with 
the  Mosaic  accounts  of  the  creation,  which  trace  the 
descent  of  Abraham  from  Adam,  and  which,  also,  con 
tain  the  whole  of  the  national,  social  and  religious  his 
tory  of  the  Jews  for  centuries  before  the  foundations  of 
Rome  were  begun.  But  the  whole  of  this  law  and 
prophecy  was,  as  a  school-master,  to  lead  us  unto  Christ, 
and  was  fulfilled  in  Him.  We  have,  also,  various  let 
ters  of  Paul,  and  others,  written  to  the  churches  since 
the  death  of  Jesus  ;  but  these  Epistles  relate  chiefly  to 
controversies  between  the  Jews  and  the  Christians,  and 
between  the  Christians  and  the  heathen,  and  the 
philosophers  ;  and  are,  also,  hortatory  to  the  churches  ; 
and  we  have  the  Revelation  of  John,  but  the  time  is 
not  yet  come  to  fully  understand  his  sayings.  All  the 
other  sacred  writings  are  useful  only  in  proving,  illus 
trating  and  enforcing,  what  the  Four  Gospels  and  the 
Acts  contain  ;  and  unless  one  should  desire  to  educate 
himself  to  teach  or  to  preach,  I  do  not  think  it  neces 
sary  or  even  profitable  for  him  to  read  or  study  them. 
But  wilt  thou  tell  me,  centurion,  what  thou  thinkest 
of  these  books  ?  What  thine  estimate  of  Christianity 
may  be  ?  What  is  it  that  the  books  teach  thee  ?" 

Then  the  centurion  replied:  "  I  fear  thou  wilt  be 
disappointed  at  the  meagerness  and  simplicitj-  of  the  sys 
tem,  which  is  all  that  I  am  able  to  adduce  from  a  short 
but  earnest  study  of  these  five  parchments  ;  for  the  first 
thing  that  impressed  itself  upon  1113-  mind  is  the  fact 
that  the  teachings  of  Jesus,  unlike  that  of  Greek  and 
Roman  philosophers  and  priests,  is  absolutely  barren  of 


THE  DAUGHTER    OF  FAUSTINA.  213 

dogmas  and  of  doctrines.  His  appeals  are  made  to,  his 
proofs  are  drawn  from,  the  heart  and  consciousness  of 
every  man,  and  not  to  and  from  dogmas  and  authority. 
And  it  seems  to  me  that  no  sane  man  can  deny  the 
truth  of  anything  which  His  teachings  assume  to  be 
true  ;  for  He  seems  to  me  to  know  just  what  is  in  the 
human  heart." 

"That  is  the  exact  truth,"  said  Epaphras.  "jSTo 
bishop  could  state  the  case  with  greater  accuracy. 
Jesus  teaches  no  dogmas,  despises  all  philosophers, 
forms,  customs  and  ceremonies,  and  deals  directly  with 
the  heart  and  consciousness  of  each  individual !" 

"  The  second  thing  which  impressed  me  most  pow 
erfully,  and  I  confess  tilled  me  with  astonishment,  is 
the  fact  that  Jesus  does  not  announce  any  new  truth 
even-  of  a  spiritual  character.  The  Jews  must  have 
known  all  that  He  taught.  The  rewards  of  faith,  and 
the  immortality  of  the  soul,  are  assumed  by  Him  to  be 
well-known  and  generally  accepted  truths  ;  only  the  Sad- 
ducees  controverted  this  position.  He  offers  Himself  as 
the  proper  object  of  human  faith,  the  Messiah  in 
whom  they  believed,  and  whom  they  were  expecting  ; 
and  this  claim  that  He  was  the  Christ  is  all  that  seems 
to  be  new  in  His  teachings." 

"  Thou  hast  rightly  read  the  word,"  said  Epaphras, 
"  and  thine  estimate  is  good.  What  else  hast  thou 
learned  ?" 

"I  find,"  said  Marcellus,  "that  this  simple  creed  of 
faith  in  Christ  has  far  less  to  do  with  Elysium  or 
Hades — the  condition  of  the  soul  after  death — than 


X 

214  DORCAS, 

with  the  temporal  life  and  welfare  of  mankind.  I  have 
reckoned  up  some  seventy-two  parables  spoken  by 
Jesus,  of  which  only  two  seem  to  refer  to  the  future 
life,  and  all  the  others  to  the  kingdom  of  heaven  upon 
earth,  which  kingdom  is  plainly  set  forth  as  a  democ 
racy,  in  which  equality  and  fraternity  of  all  believers  is 
secured  by  the  denial  of  the  right  to  bear  arms,  or  to 
engage  in  war,  by  abolishing  all  serfdom  and  slavery, 
and  by  abolishing  the  right  to  acquire,  hold  or  transmit 
private  rights  of  property,  including  in  the  word  '  pro 
perty,  not  only  estates,  real  and  personal,  but  all  offices, 
prerogatives  and  privileges,  so  that  there  may  be 
equality,  partnership,  fellowship,  among  believers,  and 
that  the  man  who  is  most  esteemed  and  loved  may  be 
the  man  who  does  the  most  good  for  others.  And  I 
understand  that  Jesus  ordained  monogamic  marriage, 
and  prohibited  divorce,  so  that  the  family  might  be  the 
basis  for  Christian  civilization,  which  is  the  common 
church.  But  Jesus  says  that  in  all  this  lie  taught  noth 
ing  new — only  fulfilled  the  Jewish  law  and  prophecies." 

"Verily  thou  hast  read  the  parchments  with  the 
spirit  and  the  understanding,  centurion  !  Thou  hast 
grasped  the  very  gospel  of  Christ  in  the  fullness  of  its 
divine  simplicity  and  purity  !  But  is  there  aught  else 
that  thou  hast  learned  ?" 

"Yea,"  answered  Marcellus,  "there  is  one  other 
thing  that  seemeth,  indeed,  to  be  the  very  heart  of  the 
whole  matter,  of  which  I  hesitate  to  speak — for  it  is 
somehow  a  most  mysterious  and  sacred  thing — it  is  that 
of  which  Christ  talked  with  Xicodemus." 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  215 

"Yea,"  cried  the  presbyter,  "the  Palingenesis — 
the  new  birth.  Thou  mayest  believe,  Marcellus — 
perhaps  thou  dost  already  believe — that  Jesus  is  the 
Christ ;  thou  mayest  believe  that  His  teachings  in  regard 
to  war,  in  regard  to  personal  liberty  for  all  men  and 
personal  accountability,  in  regard  to  property  and  in 
regard  to  marriage,  are  divinely  true,  surpassing  all 
human  laws,  philanthropy  and  statesmanship — and  yet 
not  be  a  Christian  !  Of  all  these  things  thou  mayest 
commune  with  thy  friends,  as  thou  has  been  accustomed 
to  do  with  us  ;  but  one  step  beyond  this  is  the  Holy  of 
Holies  ;  one  step  beyond  this  bringeth  thee,  and  every 
man,  to  the  supreme  question  of  human  life,  which  only 
thou  and  thy  Lord  can  settle.  '  "Wilt  thou  have  the  man 
Christ  Jesus  to  reign  over  thee  ?'  Here  the  mediation 
of  an  angel  would  be  an  impertinence  to  thee  and  to 
thy  God  ;  the  intermeddling  of  presbyter,  or  of  bishop, 
would  be  a  blasphemy.  Xo  man  can  aid  thee  here.  It 
is  the  voluntary  and  conscious  rejection  of  Jesus,  or 
else  it  is  the  voluntary,  conscious  and  unreserved  sub 
mission  of  thy  will  to  the  will  of  Christ,  and  that  thing 
thou  and  He  must  settle  as  thou  wilt.  Thou  hast  no 
further  need  of  me,  my  son.  Farewell." 

Then  rose  Epaphras  up,  and  took  his  lamp,  and 
quietly  departed  out  of  the  chapel.  But  the  maiden 
Dorcas  slipped  down  upon  her  knees  beside  the  youth, 
and  clasped  her  yearning  arms  about  him,  and  hid  her 
sweet  face  in  his  breast,  and  his  open  hand  lay  on  her 
shining  hair. 

There  was  no  metaphysical  haze,  nor  dreaminess,  nor 


216  DORCAS, 

mystery,  about  it.  Epaphras  had  set  him  face  to  face 
with  the  great  question,  and  then  began  in  his  own  soul 
the  terrible  contest  of  which  the  souls  of  all  men  have 
been  somehow,  sometime,  in  some  form  or  other,  the 
everlasting  battle-lield. 

He  understood  perfectly  well  just  what  it  meant. 
There  was  no  place  for  self-deception.  Christ,  he  knew, 
could  never  be  deceived.  Either  he  could  reject  Jesus 
and  go  his  own  way,  to  gather  all  the  blessings  of  the 
world  ;  or  he  could  submit  himself  to  Jesus,  go  whither 
soever  he  might  order,  and  forfeit  all.  What  must  he 
do  ?  He  was  young,  intelligent,  wealthy.  He  was  a 
centurion  already  and  was  thoroughly  accomplished  in 
his  profession  of  arms  ;  he  was  of  an  old  and  honorable 
family ;  the  Iloman  world  was  almost  in  his  grasp  ;  he 
could,  by  an  act  of  the  will  alone,  stifle  the  intangible 
sense  of  duty,  silence  the  speechless  voice  of  conscience 
and  gratify  all  human  lusts  and  ambitions  as  few  men 
have  ever  had  the  opportunity  to  do  ;  or  he  could  turn 
his  back  upon  all  those  material  advantages,  renounce 
his  already  important  position  in  the  empire,  subject 
himself  to  the  pity  and  contempt  of  his  associates,  and 
to  the  measureless  scorn  of  the  proud  class  to  which  he 
belonged,  to  enter  upon  a  life  of  poverty,  self-denial, 
esteemed  to  be  infamous,  full  of  toils  and  danger,  lead 
ing,  perhaps,  to  martyrdom.  What  must  he  do  ? 

Epaphras  was  right.  No  mortal  could  give  him  any 
aid  ;  it  was  a  business  to  be  transacted  between  his  soul 
and  Christ. 

The  struggle  grew  more  and  more  desperate  every 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  217 

instant ;  his  brows  knitted,  and  his  lips  grew  white,  and 
his  bosom  heaved  tempestuously  with  fierce  agony  and 
strife.  Hour  after  hour  the  fearful  contest  shook  him, 
soul  and  body.  But  the  young  girl  would  not  leave  him. 
Kneeling  beside  him,  she  suffered  with  him,  and  all  her 
heart  yearned  over  him  ;  but  hardly  did  either  of  them 
speak.  Often  prayed  she  for  the  Holy  Spirit  to  descend 
upon  'him.  Again  she  sat  near  him,  with  his  hand  in 
hers. 

Finally  the  tempest  passed  away.  In  the  depths  of 
his  own  heart,  freely,  voluntarily,  with  a  painfully  dis 
tinct  consciousness  of  all  the  consequences  that  might 
follow,  he  consecrated  himself,  soul  and  body,  once 
for  all,  for  life  and  death,  for  time  and  eternity,  to 
Jesus  Christ  and  His  service  ;  and  a  great  calm,  full  of 
peace  and  joy,  came  over  him.  With  a  radiant  smile 
upon  his  worn  and  haggard  face,  he  said  most  simply  : 
"  It  is  all  over,  Dorcas  ;  I  will  follow  Jesus  Christ." 

Then  the  floodgates  of  long-restrained  emotions  were 
opened  in  her  heart,  and  the  young  maiden  laughed, 
and  cried,  and  sang  praises  to  her  God,  all  in  a 
breath,  and  she  did  kiss  Marcellus  over  and  over  again, 
saying  continually  :  "  Thank  God  for  thee,  Marcellus  ! 
Praise  the  Lord,  oh,  my  soul !  for  His  loving  kindness — 
oh,  how  great !  And  His  mercy  endure th  for  ever." 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

IN  WHICH  EUSEBIUS    SHOWETH   THE   SWADDLING- 
BANDS  OF   CONSTANTINE. 

EUSEBIUS,  who  was  the  principal  one  among  those 
who  were  nominated  to  go  upon  the  embassage  to  Con- 
stantine,  undertook  the  long  journey  to  Lutetia  with 
good  hope,  and  right  speedily  accomplished  it.  The 
church  statistics  which  he  laid  before  the  emperor 
filled  him  with  astonishment,  and  at  first  with  alarm, 
but  his  anxiety  speedily  changed  into  pleasure  when  he 
had  been  more  fully  informed  of  the  doctrines  and 
practices  of  the  Christians.  For  he  was  so  astute  a 
politican  "  that  the  passive  and  unresisting  obedience 
which  bows  under  the  yoke  of  authority  or  even  of  op 
pression  appeared  in  the  eyes  of  an  absolute  monarch 
the  most  conspicuous  and  useful  of  the  evangelic  vir- 
fcues."  For  as  the  Christians  were  forbidden  by  their 
faith  "  to  employ  force  even  in  defense  of  their  religion, 
they  would  be  still  more  criminal  if  they  were  tempted 
to  shed  the  blood  of  their  fellow-creatures  in  disputing 
the  vain  privileges  or  the  sordid  possessions  of  this 
transitory  life."  So  that  he  had  no  fear  of  their  great 
numbers  and  opulent  resources  when  he  learned  that 
the  Christians,  "Faithful  to  the  doctrine  of  the  Apostle 
who,  in  the  reign  of  Nero,  had  preached  the  duty  of 

unconditional  submission  during  the  first  three  cen- 
218 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  219 

turies,  had  preserved  their  consciences  pure  and  inno 
cent  of  the  guilt  of  secret  conspiracy  or  of  open 
rebellion.  While  they  experienced  the  rigor  of  perse 
cution  they  were  never  provoked  either  to  meet  then- 
tyrants  in  the  field  or  indignantly  to  withdraw  them 
selves  into  some  remote  and  sequestered  corner  of  the 
world."  So  that  Constantine's  first  emotion  of  alarm 
at  the  discovery  of  a  body  of  men  so  numerous,  so 
zealous  and  so  thoroughly  organized  "  that  they  consti 
tuted  a  distinct  democracy,  which  was  already  governed 
by  its  own  laws  and  officers,  was  possessed  of  a  common 
treasure  and  was  intimately  connected  through  all  its 
parts  by  the  frequent  assemblies  of  its  bishops,  to 
whose  decrees  their  numerous  and  opulent  congrega 
tions  yielded  implicit  obedience,"  was  entirely  removed 
upon  learning  the  tenets  of  their  faith,  which  rendered 
them  a  valuable,  but  not  a  dangerous  element,  in  the 
population  of  the  empire.  For  the  far-seeing  Constan- 
tine  at  once  perceived  that  there  would  always  be 
soldiers  enough  unless  all  people  should  become  Chris 
tians,  and  saw  that  if  all  became  Christians  there  would 
be  no  need  of  soldiers,  but  that  swords  might  be  beaten 
into  plowshares  and  spears  into  priming-hooks  ;  and 
that  while  this  change  was  in  progress  (if  indeed  it  ever 
should  occur)  the  resources  of  the  empire  would  be 
kept  increasing  by  the  peaceful  industry  of  the  Chris- 
tain  communities. 

"I  must  have,"  he  said  unto  Eusebuis — "I  must 
have  the  friendship  of  this  great  and  wonderful  com 
munity.  On  what  terms  can  I  obtain  it  ?" 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  221 

"  I  judge  from  the  spirit  of  the  council  called  to  con 
sider  the  matter,1'  said  Eusebius,  "that  it  would  be 
well-nigh  impossible  to  induce  them  to  bear  arms  in 
any  cause  ;  because  by  the  teachings  of  Christ  and  by 
the  practice  of  the  church  for  three  centuries  they  are 
forbidden  to  do  so." 

"  Then,"  said  Constantine,  "the  same  susperstition 
that  forbids  them  to  bear  arms  in  my  behalf  ought  also 
to  prevent  them  from  affording  any  assistance  to  Max- 
entius." 

"Assuredly,"  answered  Eusebius,  "except  that 
they  pay  taxes  to  the  powers  that  be  ;  to  thine  if  they 
be  under  thy  dominion  ;  to  Maxentius  while  he  bears 
rule.  If  they  could  be  induced  to  go  to  war  at  all  they 
would  recruit  an  army  for  thee.  But  for  three  centuries 
they  have  steadily  refused  to  bear  arms  even  in  defense 
of  the  faith  for  which  they  do  not  hesitate  to  die." 

"I  must  have  this  people,"  said  Constantine.  "I 
will  have  them.  Thou  mayest  take  back  to  them  my 
pledge  that  I  will  exempt  all  Christians  from  military 
service  and  leave  them  in  full  enjoyment  of  their  own 
democratic  institutions." 

"Permit  me  to  suggest,"  said  Eusebius,  "  that  thine 
imperial  mandate  go  not  quite  so  far.  Let  it  be  left  as 
a  matter  of  conscience  to  each  individual ;  for  there  be 
many  Christians  who  would  serve  if  the  church  did  not 
forbid  it,  and  the  clergy  insist  mightily  upon  liberty  of 
conscience." 

"  So  it  let  be,"  answered  the  emperor  ;  "for  in  many 
things  I  prefer  the  system  of  these  Christians  to  any 


222  DORCAS, 

that  is  to  known  in  history.  Wouldst  thou  advise  me 
to  profess  this  faith,  and  join  the  church  ?" 

"  2Jay,"  answered  Eusebius.  "  They  fully  understand 
that  no  emperor  can  be  a  Christian  without  ceasing  to 
be  an  emperor.  The  church  is  democracy,  liberty, 
equality,  fraternity.  No  bishop  would  baptize  thee 
unless  thou  first  resign  thy  scepter." 

"Speak  thou  freely,"  said  Constantino.  "I  desire 
to  know  thy  very  thoughts,  without  reserve." 

"I  think,"  answered  the  wise  Eusebius,  "that 
thou  hast  discovered  the  deepest  political  truth  of  this 
century,  in  holding  that  the  best  subjects  for  an  abso 
lute  monarch  are  those  who,  like  the  Christians,  will 
not  bear  arms  at  all— for  such  I  perceive  to  be  thy  sen 
timent.  But  the  Christians  hold  other  doctrines  with 
equal  tenacity  and  unswerving  faith.  They  are  opposed 
to  slavery,  and  no  Christian  will  own  a  slave.  They 
utterly  deny  the  right  of  the  individual  to  acquire, 
hold,  or  transmit  private  property,  and  the  church 
holds  all  in  common  for  the  good  of  all.  They  consider 
monogamic  marriage  a  sacrament  of  religion  ;  deny  the 
lawfulness  of  divorce,  and  constitute  the  family  the 
basis  of  society,  and  the  church  the  only  superstructure 
that  Christians  can  lawfully  aid  in  erecting  thereon. 
Any  profession  of  faith  that  is  not  followed  by  the 
practice  of  these  social  and  political  principles  they 
would  believe  to  be  hypocritical,  and  would  regard  with 
loathing  and  contempt.  So  that  it  is  impossible  for 
Augustus  to  conform  his  life  to  these  fundamental  laws 
of  the  Kingdom  of  Heaven." 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  223 

"But,"  exclaimed  Constantine.  "  I  must  have  this 
people  !  And,  by  Jupiter  Ammon,  I  will  have  them  !" 

Then  he  sprang  from  his  seat  and  paced  the  room 
with  rapid  strides  until  he  had  regained  his  equa 
nimity.  Then  he  sat  down  in  front  of  Eusebius  and 
fixed  his  splendid  eyes  upon  him  with  a  gaze  as  calm 
and  searching  as  if  he  sought  to  read  his  very  soul,  and 
presently  he  said  :  "  Art  thou  a  Christian  ?" 

And  the  mellifluous  voice  of  Eusebius  answered  in 
placid,  liquid  tones : 

"I  am  a  bishop  of  the  church  of  Christ." 

"Is  that  the  highest  rank  known  to  the  Christian 
democracy  ?" 

"  Yea.  We  have  no  apostles  now,  and  all  bishops 
possess  equal  authority — the  power  and  influence  ex 
ercised  by  them  depending  only  upon  the  respective 
character  of  the  individual  and  the  locality,  numbers, 
and  opulence  of  his  church." 

Then  said  Constantine,  musingly  :  "  The  high-priest 
of  the  Sanhedrim  at  Jerusalem  ;  the  chief  of  the  Order 
of  the  Druids  in  Britain  ;  the  Flamen  of  Jupiter,  Pon- 
tifax  Maximus  at  Rome  ;  the  bishops  of  the  church  of 
Christ — they  are  all  men,  and  all  alike."  And  then  he 
continued  in  a  lower  tone:  "If  thou  canst  bring  the 
Christian  communities  over  to  me,  what  good  thing 
dost  thou  desire  for  thyself?  Speak  boldly,  without 
lying  or  equivocation !  I  will  have  no  evasion,  or 
crookedness  in  any  man  with  whom  I  talk." 

"  I  should  expect  to  receive,"  said  Eusebius,  placidly, 
"  and  think  that  I  would  deserve,  the  confidence  and 


234  DORCAS, 

favor  of  the  greatest  emperor  that  hath  ever  governed 
Rome." 

Then  the  two  most  able  men  of  that  century  gazed 
for  a  moment  into  each  other's  eyes,  and  understood 
each  other  perfectly. 

"Now,"  said  Constantine,  "knowing  the  Christians 
thoroughly,  as  thou  dost,  I  desire  thee  to  advise  me 
carefully  how  I  may  bind  this  people  to  my  throne. 
What  is  thy  counsel — for  thou  art  not  a  fool,  and  thou 
hast  already  sifted  this  whole  matter  clean  ?" 

Eusebius  made  a  very  singular  reply,  only  saying  : 

"  Hast  thou  ever  read  '  The  Acts  of  the  Apostles  ?'  " 

An  angry  frown  contracted  the  brow  of  Constantine 
for  a  moment,  but  it  passed  away,  and  he  replied  : 

"No-!  But  why  dost  thou  ask  a  question  so  imper 
tinent  to  the  matter  in  hand  ?" 

Then  said  Eusebius,  still  apparently  thinking  of  some 
thing  foreign  to  the  subject  of  their  thoughts  :  "It  may 
be  hard  for  thee  to  realize  the  truth,  but  the  truth  is, 
that  from  the  days  of  Pontius  Pilate  until  now,  the 
the  church  of  Christ,  by  the  power  of  faith,  hath  been 
accustomed  to  unstop  the  ears  of  the  deaf,  cure  the 
lame  and  the  halt,  restore  sight  to  the  blind,  and  raise 
the  dead,  and  to  do  many  other  thaumaturgical  works, 
as  the  usual  and  proper  evidence  of  the  divinity  of 
Jesus,  and  the  right  of  the  church  to  teach  and  to 
preach  by  His  authority ;  and  this  thaumaturgical 
power  is  the  secret  of  that  splendid  vitality  which  has 
enabled  the  church  to  live  and  to  flourish,  although  all 
the  resources  of  pagan  power  and  civilization  have  been 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  225 

deployed  against  her  from  the  very  beginning.  Thou 
wilt  understand,  therefore,  that  a  miracle  to  a  Christian 
does  not  seem  to  be  any  strange  or  incredible  thing.  In 
fact,  I  have  witnessed  at  least  hundreds,  and  nearly  all 
Christians  have  seen  them.  If  thou  wilt  carefully  read 
the  Acts  of  the  Apostles  to-night,  and  especially  the 
dramatic  and  beautiful  account  of  the  conversion  of 
Saul  of  Tarsus,  I  will  wait  upon  thee  in  the  morning 
to  offer  thee  one  single  comment  upon  that  scripture." 

"Thou  mayest  go,"  said  Constantine,  "with  the 
assurance  that  I  will  read  the  book  with  care." 

When,  on  the  next  morning,  Eusebius  came  before 
the  Emperor,  Constantine  immediately  spoke  as  follows : 
"  The  conversion  of  Saul  of  Tarsus  was  a  wonderful 
event.  I  have  read  the  whole  parchment  thrice,  and 
that  particular  passage  oftener  still.  I  tell  thee,  bishop, 
that  the  internal  evidences  of  its  verity  are  so  irresistible 
that  I  believe  the  story  to  be  true.  In  fact,  I  would  do 
anything  to  be  a  Christian,  except  to  resign  the  Roman 
Empire — that  I  will  not  do.  Now  what  is  the  comment 
on  this  scripture." 

Eusebius  gazed  upon  the  emperor,  and  saw  that 
Constantine  spoke  in  very  sincerity  and  truth,  and 
murmured  to  himself:  "Many  men  have  lost  their 
souls  for  less !" 

But  to  the  emperor  he  said:  "1  have  been  praying 
that  God  might  commission  thee  to  protect  His  church, 
and  that  He  might  confirm  thy  mission  by  some  sign  as 
significant  and  sublime  as  that  which  Paul  offered  as 
evidence  of  his  own  apostleship.  I  desire  of  thee  per- 


226  D  OR  CAS, 

mission  to  return  straightway  to  Rome.  If  any 
authentic  information  should  shortly  follow  me  that 
the  event  for  which  I  prayed  had  really  come  to  pass, 
I  would  thank  God  and  take  courage,  and  might 
persuade  the  church  to  accept  thee  as  their  emperor, 
appointed  by  Heaven  to  bring  peace  unto  the  long  perse 
cuted  saints,  even  although  thou  thyself  should  not 
become  a  Christian  but  remain  the  emperor.  Have  I 
thy  permission  to  return  at  once  to  Rome  ?" 

"Yea;  go  thou  quickly,"  said  Constantine,  with 
eagerness.  "The  daemon  tells  me  that  the  thing  thou 
hast  desired  of  Heaven  shall  certainty  occur  !  I  have, 
indeed,  a  strong  and  assuring  faith  that  it  will  happen ! 
Hasten  thou  to  Rome." 

And  so,  furthered  by  Constantine  by  every  aid  that 
imperial  power  could  command  up  to  the  confines  of 
Italy,  Eusebius  returned  to  Rome.  Upon  the  occasion 
of  the  former  council  this  adroit  and  unscrupulous  man 
had  carefully  ascertained  and  preserved  the  name  and 
address  of  every  bishop  and  presbyter  who  had  favored 
his  own  views,  and  being  afraid  to  submit  the  question 
of  adopting  the  policy  upon  which  his  own  heart  was 
set  to  a  council  in  which  the  stern,  incorruptible 
Christian  integrity  of  Epaphras  and  of  many  like  him 
would  confront,  expose  and  overwhelm  the  plausible 
sophisms  by  which  he  had  deceived  even  himself,  he 
chose  rather  to  confer  privily  with  those  who  had  been 
inclined  to  favor  his  own  views.  Therefore,  both  at 
Rome  and  elsewhere,  he  solicited  an  interview  with  such 
as  could  conveniently  assemble  at  each  place,  and 


SO  MAT  ALL  TRAITORS   AND  ALL  CHRISTIANS   DIE  !" p.   237. 


228  DORCAS, 

obtained  their  signatures,  knowing  that  Constantine 
would  not  understand  the  differences  between  a  docu 
ment  authenticated  by  their  individual  names  and  a 
decree  passed  by  the  common  consent  in  regular 
council. 

The  points  upon  which  Eusebius  insisted  in  these 
small  but  numerous  assemblies,  with  consummate  ad 
dress,  were  about  as  follows  :  That  upon  further  con 
ference  with  Ponstantine  he  had  found  him  to  be  far 
more  favorably  inclined  to  Christianity  than  he  had 
aforetime  believed  or  represented  ;  that  the  emperor 
would  not  require  any  Christian  to  bear  arms,  but 
would  leave  it  to  the  conscience  of  each  one  to  de 
termine  for  himself  whether  he  might  do  so  or  not — a 
"liberty  of*  conscience"  upon  which  the  church  had 
always  insisted  ;  that  no  alliance  between  the  church 
and  the  emperor  was  desired,  or  even  proposed,  but 
that  the  emperor  only  desired  the  prayers  of  the  Chris 
tians,  their  loyalty  and  friendship,  the  payment  of  cus 
tomary  taxes — which  as  citizens  they  had  paid  even  to 
Nero  and  Diocletian — and  wished  to  give  them  legal 
protection,  if  the  church  would  accept  it  ;  that  within 
the  limits  of  their  own  community  the  Christians  might 
maintain  their  laws  and  customs  unimpaired  ;  and  that 
if  the  civil  war,  in  which  he  was  about  to  engage, 
should  be  protracted  beyond  one  campaign,  they 
must  furnish  money  or  supplies,  or  both. 

Eusebius  urged  vehemently  that  these  things  did  not 
constitute  any  alliance  with  the  emperor,  and  were  not 
inconsistent  with  Christianity,  and  in  this  plausible 


THE  DAUGHTER    OF  FAUSTINA.  229 

statement  of  the  case  he  soon  found  able  coadjutors  to 
divide  the  work  with  him,  and  prosecute  the  business 
in  many  quarters  simultaneously.  To  all  of  them  he 
furnished  an  answer  to  the  one  fatal  objection  "  that 
any  concensus  between  the  church  and  the  empire  must 
necessarily  shear  the  Christians  clear  of  all  thaumatur- 
gical  powers  which  were  appurtenant  only  to  the  pure 
democracy  of  Christ,  wherein  they  must  of  necessity  be 
exercised  only  for  the  common  good,  and  could  never 
be  used  to  build  up  an  earthly  kingdom,  or  a  secu 
larized  church,"  as  follows  :  That  it  must  be  candidly 
admitted  that  the  loss  of  thaumaturgical  power  would 
in  all  probability  follow  the  acceptance  of  the  imperial 
protection  ;  but  that  these  powers  were  given  only  to 
enable  the  church  to  maintain  herself  against  a  world 
hostile  to  the  claims  of  Christianity  ;  that  spiritual  truth 
would  be  preserved  unimpaired,  and  that  the  miracles 
which  had  been  continuously  wrought  for  three  cen 
turies  would  be  sufficient  evermore  to  demonstrate  the 
gospel  truth  ;  that  there  could  be  no  necessity  for  con 
tinuous  miraculous  aid  to  insure  the  triumph  of  the 
church,  backed  by  the  lloman  Empire,  the  mistress  of 
the  world  ;  and  that,  finally,  if  a  time  should  ever 
arrive  in  the  history  of  the  church  when  it  might  be 
come  necessary  to  resort  to  thauinaturgy  to  secure  her 
triumph,  the  church  could  do  so  by  cutting  loose  from 
all  secular  governments  and  reorganizing  her  commu 
nities  on  the  primitive  foundation  of  communism  and 
faith. 

By  these  and  many  more  such   specious  arguments 


230  DORCAS, 

Eusebius  secured  a  great  number  of  signatures  of 
bishops  and  presbyters  to  a  parchment  promising  what 
Constantine  desired.  And  this  was  made  the  more 
easy  by  an  extraordinary  rumor  that  became  current 
among  the  Christians  both  at  Home  and  elsewhere.  It 
was  affirmed  that  the  Emperor  Constantine,  marching 
at  the  head  of  his  army  at  midday,  had  seen  a  miracu 
lous  cross  in  the  heavens  shining  above  the  brightness  of 
the  sun  and  had  seen  an  inscription  thereon  in  the  Greek 
language  :  "  In  this  sign  conquer ;"  it  was  furthermore 
given  out  that  in  a  vision  of  the  night,  Christ  or  an 
angel,  had  appeared  unto  the  emperor,  and  had  directed 
him  to  take  for  a  standard  a  cross  bearing  his  own 
effigy,  and  the  words  which  he  had  beheld  upon  that 
cross  seen  by  him  in  heaven,  and  to  march  against 
Maxentius  and  all  his  enemies  with  the  assurance  of 
success ;  and  that  he  must  be  the  Protector  of  the 
Church  of  Jesus  Christ.  It  was  further  given  out  that 
the  vision  had  directed  him  to  call  his  standard  by  a 
a  miraculous  name,  Labartint,  a  word  before  unknown 
to  the  human  race,  and  having  no  root  or  origin  in  any 
earthly  language.  It  was  furthermore  given  out  that 
although  the  whole  army  had  seen  the  celestial  sign, 
Constantine  (because  of  the  heathen)  desired  the  vision 
and  the  words  to  be  kept  secret  from  all  except  the 
Christians. 

To  those  who  made  careful  inquiry,  what  seemed  to 
be  the  main  fact,  the  luminous  appearance  above  the 
midday  sun,  was  proved  by  incontestable  and  over 
whelming  testimony ;  and  Eusebius  and  those  who 


THE  DAUGHTER    OF  FAUSTINA.          231 

acted  with  him  used  this  strange  story  with  wonderful 
success  in  bringing  still  others  over  to  their  own  views  ; 
and  many  urged  that  a  council  be  summoned  to  con 
sider  the  whole  matter  again.  But  this  Eusebius 
vehemently  opposed,  saying  that  it  was  not  necessary, 
and  that  Constantino  did  not  require  their  action  to  be 
taken  in  council,  being  satisfied  with  their  signatures 
and  the  revelation  vouchsafed  to  him  constituting  him 
the  Defender  of  the  Faith.  But  when  these  things 
came  to  the  knowledge  of  Epaphras  and  those  who 
agreed  with  him  in  sentiment,  they  vigorously  en 
deavored  to  secure  the  calling  of  a  council,  but  their 
action  had  been  forestalled  by  Eusebius  ;  and  when 
they  found  that  they  could  not  obtain  their  desires  in  this 
regard,  they  issued  a  pastoral  letter  to  all  of  the  churches, 
warning  them  against  the  course  pursued  by  Euse 
bius.  And  this  letter  began  with  the  declaration  that 
"  Eusebius  had  forestalled  the  summoning  of  a  council, 
because  he  well  knew  that  whenever  the  common 
church  might  meet  to  deliberate  upon  the  matter  the 
Holy  Ghost  would  come  upon  them,  and  would  guide 
them  into  all  truth — which  fact  Eusebius  feared." 

The  letter  also  said,  "  the  day  that  ye  conclude  this 
sacrilegious  bargain  miracles  will  cease  ;  or  will  hence 
forth  occur  only  sporadically,  beyond  any  control  or  in 
fluence  of  the  church,  and  in  such  seemingly  accidental 
ways  as  to  render  them  no  longer  available  as  evidence 
of  the  divinity  of  Jesus.  Then  ye  will  have  nothing 
left  of  Christ's  gospel  except  its  spiritual  truth,  and 
Christianity  will  speedily  become  a  mere  ecclesiasticism 


232  DORCAS, 

as  much  as  Judaism  or  paganism — a  secularized  church 
using  the  religious  sentiment  of  mankind  to  maintain 
political  despotisms,  ready  to  give  the  pretended  sanc 
tion  of  our  Lord  to  war,  slavery,  Mammon-worship 
and  every  other  crime,  fraud  and  injustice  that  the 
empire  may  establish  by  some  felon  formula  of  law." 

And  the  letter  said,  "and  there  will  grow  up  an 
ecclesiasticism  in  which  the  so-called  ministers  of  Christ 
shall  preach  the  gospel  for  money,  and  there  shall  be 
among  them  envy,  jealousy,  hatred,  strife,  ambition 
and  selfishness,  such  as  even  the  heathen  permit  not 
in  their  temples;"  and  the  letter  also  said:  "The 
church  so  constituted  shall  be  the  master  of  ceremonies 
for  countless  forms,  doctrines  and  secular  authority, 
condemned  by  Jesus,  and  shall  lose  the  power  of  godli 
ness  and  the  beauty  of  truth,  even  as  the  Eusebians 
themselves  admit  that  thaumaturgy  shall  fade  away  ;" 
and  the  letter  concluded  as  follows  :  "  Brethren,  this  is  to 
sell  our  Lord  ;  it  is  to  distroy  His  holy  common  church  ; 
it  is  to  establish  mere  Phariseeism  upon  the  ruins  of  for 
saken  and  forgotten  Christianity ;  it  is  to  set  up  the 
Anti-Christ." 

And  this  letter  having  been  read  by  many,  some  of 
them  who  had  signed  went  to  Eusebius  to  erase  their 
signatures  from  the  parchment ;  to  whom  he  answered  : 
"The  parchment  hath  already  been  sent  and  is  far  upon 
the  way  to  the  emperor." 


CHAPTEK  XIX. 

IN  WHICH    THERE    IS  A   DEATH   AXD   ALSO  A 
MARRIAGE. 

WHILE  this  business  was  transacting  secretly,  and 
before  Eusebius  had  procured  the  signatures  to  the 
parchment  which  he  sent  to  Constantino,  after  the 
Centurion  Marcellus  had  been  baptized  by  Epaphras 
in  the  chapel  in  the  catacombs,  and  had  partaken  of 
the  communion  in  one  of  those  pleasant  Sabbath-day 
conferences  which  had  long  been  customary  between 
himself,  Dorcas  and  Epaphras,  the  young  man  spake 
thus:  "I  am,  indeed,  very  happy,  Father  Epaphras,  in 
the  faith  of  Christ ;  but  I  feel  bound  in  my  conscience 
to  abandon  the  military  service  of  the  empire,  and  to 
publicly  declare  my  faith  in  Jesus;  nor  can  I  have  per 
fect  peace  until  this  shall  have  been  done." 

"If  thou  do  this  thing  publicly,"  said  Epaphras, 
"  the  Romans  will  put  thee  to  death,  both  because  thou 
art  a  Christian,  and  also  because  thou  forsakest  the 
military  life  without  the  consent  of  the  emperor. 
Nevertheless,  Marcellus,  consider  the  matter  well,  and 
follow  thou  the  teachings  of  thine  own  conscience." 

And  the  centurion  said:  "I  have  considered  it  very 
fully.  I  know  that  the  duties  of  an  officer  in  the  army 

of  the  empire  and  the  duties  of  a  Christian  are  irrecon- 
233 


234  DORCAS, 

cilable.     I   have   resolved   upon   this  course,   and  will 
pursue  it.     I  cannot  do  otherwise." 

"  A  life  bought  by  the  sacrifice  of  one's  conscience  is 
purchased  at  too  dear  a  price,"  said  Epaphras.  "The 
Libellatici  and  the  Thurifivati,  who  have  purchased  of 
the  heathen  priests  or  magistrates  false  certificates  that 
they  had  sacrificed  to  the  pagan  gods,  when  it  was  not 
true  that  they  had  done  so,  in  order  to  escape  the  con 
sequences  of  having  been  discovered  to  be  Christians, 
have  no  peace,  although  forgiven  by  the  church." 

"I  am  resolved,"  said  Marcellus,  "and  I  have  men 
tioned  the  matter  to  thee  chiefly  because  if  I  be  slain 
therefor,  perhaps  the  Lord  might  grant  the  Anastasis, 
which  I  do  desire  exceedingly,  if  it  be  His  will." 

"  The  church  shall  pray  for  thee  in  that  behalf,"  said 
Epaphras.  "  Thou  understandest  that  we  do  not  know 
what  may  be  the  will  of  God  concerning  thee  !" 

"  I  go  hence,"  said  Marcellus,  "  to  carry  out  my  pur 
pose.  If  I  perish,  I  perish.  Eare  thee  well  1" 

Then  the  presbyter  embraced  him  and  kissed  him  on 
his  forehead,  saying:  "Farewell,  my  son!  The  peace 
of  God  be  and  abide  with  thee  !" 

And  after  a  tender  leave-taking  of  Dorcas,  the  cen 
turion,  who  had  learned  the  way  to  and  from  the 
chapel  by  repeated  visits,  departed  upon  his  dangerous 
mission. 


The  next  evening,  when  the  legion  to  which  he  be 
longed  was   mustered   for    customary   exercise,  which 


AND    THEY    BOTH    AXSWEItED,  "  AMEX  !"— p.   238. 


236  DORCAS, 

had  recently  become  frequent  and  onerous  because  of 
the  impending  war  with  Constantine,  in  the  view  of  the 
legion  and  of  a  crowd  that  had  assembled  to  watch 
their  evolutions,  the  centurion  deliberately  left  the 
head  of  his  century  and  advanced  to  the  legionary,  who 
turned  fiercely  upon  him  and  cried  out : 

"Why  hast  thou  left  thy  post?  What  dost  thou 
here  ?" 

Then  Marcellus  took  off  his  belt,  and  his  arms,  and 
the  insignia  of  his  office,  and  laid  them  down  at  the 
feet  of  the  legionary,  and  he  said  in  a  loud  voice  : 

"  Know  thou  that  I  have  become  a  Christian,  whom 
conscience  permitteth  not  to  bear  arms,  and  I  do  here 
resign  my  command,  refuse  to  serve  longer,  and  will 
follow  no  king  but  Jesus  Christ  henceforth." 

But  the  legionary,  drawing  his  sword,  cried  out : 

"I  care  not  for  thy  conscience,  nor  for  thy  Christ, 
but  for  military  order  and  obedience  ;  and  if  thou  dost 
not  instantly  resume  thine  arms,  and  return  straight 
to  thy  proper  place,  I  will  smite  thee  dead  with  mine 
own  hand." 

Marcellus  crossed  his  arms  upon  his  breast,  and, 
gazing  upon  the  legionary,  said  : 

"For  conscience  sake  I  will  not  obey  thee.  Strike 
thou  home  !" 

And  thereupon  the  legionary  thrust  his  sword  through 
Marcellus'  bosom  so  that  the  point  thereof  came  out 
behind  his  back,  and  the  young  centurion  sank  down 
upon  his  knees,  and  then  fell  at  full  length  upon  the 
ground. 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  237 

And  the  legionary  set  his  foot  upon  the  breast  of  Mar- 
cellus,  and  pulled  and  withdrew  his  two-edged  sword, 
and  holding  it  aloft  did  cry  aloud,  saying  : 

"  So  may  all  traitors  and  all  Christians  die  !" 

At  the  oi'der  of  the  legionary,  the  soldiers  marched 
past  the  centurion's  body  as  it  lay  prone  upon  the 
ground.  Then  four  men  were  told  off  to  bear  it  away 
from  the  Campus  Martius  and  lay  it  where  it  would  not 
obstruct  the  manoeuvres,  which  were  continued  as 
though  no  such  terrible  thing  had  happened,  while  a 
messenger  was  dispatched  to  the  Vice-Prefect  Varus 
bearing  the  news  of  his  son's  treason  and  summary  ex 
ecution  at  the  hands  of  the  legionary. 

But  certain  men  among  those  who  stood  around 
presently  came  forward,  raised  up  his  body,  and,  having 
brought  a  litter,  no  one  preventing  them,  they  placed 
the  body  thereon,  and  they  carried  it  to  the  chapel  in 
the  catacombs,  wherein  were  many  awaiting  the  return 
of  Epaphras  and  others  who  had  gone  to  mingle 
with  the  crowd  about  the  Campus  Martius,  and  to 
observe  the  action  of  Marcellus,  and  what  might  come 
of  it. 

And  Dorcas  also  was  with  them  there,  and  at  the 
selfsame  instant  the  legionary  smote  the  young  man  she 
felt  as  if  a  sword  had  pierced  her  own  heart  also,  but 
she  ceased  not  to  pray,  and  to  say  :  "Surely  the  Lord 
will  restore  him  to  us  !" 

And  when  those  that  brought  in  the  corpse  had  laid 
it  upon  the  long  table  in  the  sight  of  all,  Epaphras,  the 
presbyter,  prayed  mightily  to  God  that  lie  would  grant 


238  DOH  CAS, 

the  Anastasi.s  for  Marcellus,  and  all  the  people 
answered,  "  Amen  !" 

And  Epaphras,  coming  round  to  the  table,  took  the 
hand  of  Marcellus  in  his  own,  saying  in  a  loud  voice  : 
"  Brother,  if  it  be  the  will  of  God  concerning  thee,  in 
the  name  of  Jesus  Christ  of  Nazareth,  arise  and 
live  !" 

And  the  young  man  arose  and  stood  upon  his  feet, 
praising  the  Lord.  And  straightway  he  clasped  unto 
his  bosom  the  maiden  Dorcas,  and  they  did  talk  with 
each  other  briefly,  and  the}-  did  call  the  presbyter 
Epaphras  to  come  unto  them,  and  thereupon  the  pres 
byter  did  call  the  rejoicing  congregation  to  order,  and 
when  they  were  seated  he  said  : 

"Marcellus  and  Dorcas  desire  to  be  united  in  matri 
mony  according  to  God's  holy  ordinance.  Come  ye 
forward  !" 

And  the  twain  came  forward,  hand  in  hand,  and 
Epaphras  saith  :  "  Do  ye  each  take  each  other  for  hus 
band  and  wife,  of  your  own  free  will  and  choice,  to 
dwell  together  in  the  holy  estate  of  Christian  marriage, 
according  to  the  commands  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ, 
as  in  His  Gospel  is  set  forth  ?  "  And  both  of  them 
answered,  "We  do."  Then  said  Epaphras :  "In  the 
name  of  the  Father,  and  of  the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy 
Ghost,  I  declare  ye  twain  to  be  one  flesh.  Whom, 
therefore,  God  hath  joined  together  let  no  man  put 
asunder."  And  they  both  answered,  "Amen  !  "  and  all 
the  people  said,  "Amen!"  And  Marcellus  put  his 
arms  around  Dorcas'  neck  and  did  kiss  her,  and  did  say 


THE  DAUGHTER    OF  FAUSTINA.  239 

with  great  content,  "  Thou  art  my  wife  !  "  and  she  did 
look  upon  him  with  beaming  countenance  and  did  say, 
"  Thou  art  my  husband  !  " 

And  the  congregation  were  glad  and  did  rejoice,  and 
when  they  all  were  gone  Dorcas  took  up  her  lamp  and 
said:  "Come,  husband  mine,  and  I  will  show  to  thee 
the  home  in  which  I  have  dwelt  so  long."  And  hand 
in  hand  the  twain  departed  out  of  the  chapel. 


CHAPTER  XX. 

Xow,  the  Emperor  Constantine  in  due  time  received 
the  parchment  which  Eusebius  sent  to  him,  signed  by 
many  bishops  and  presbyters,  and  he  read  the  same 
with  joy  ;  and  immediate!}'  he  put  his  legions  upon 
the  march  to  Home,  bearing  the  cruciform  standards 
which  they  called  Labarums.  After  twice  defeating 
the  armies  which  Maxentius  led  forth  to  dispute  the 
passage  of  the  Alps,  on  the  27th  day  of  October.  A.D. 
312,  his  forces  were  cantoned  at  Saxa  Rubra,  and  upon 
the  next  day  he  attacked  the  army  of  the  Emperor 
Maxeutius,  then  drawn  up  in  battle  order  at  the  Fabri- 
cus  Bridge,  nine  miles  from  Rome,  and  defeated  that 
arm}'  with  great  slaughter.  And  the  Emperor  Maxen 
tius  did  attempt  to  swim  his  horse  across  the  Tiber 
and  so  escape  back  into  Rome,  but  he  was  drowned 
there  in  the  river  ;  and  there  was  no  more  of  that  war, 
and  Constantine  was  at  once  recognized  as  Emperor  of 
Italy,  as  well  as  of  the  west,  and  as  Augustus. 

But  after  the  compact  which  Eusebius  had  prepared 
to  be  signed  by  the  presbyters  and  bishops  had  received 
their  signatures  and  had  been  delivered  to  faithful  mes 
sengers  to  be  conveyed  to  the  Emperor  Constantine, 
one  whom  Maxentius,  by  his  magistrates,  had  ordered 

to  be  beheaded,  had  sent  earnest  requests  to  the  Pres- 

240 


THE  DAUGHTER    OF  FAUSTINA.  241 

byter  Epaphras  and  to  the  church  that  they  would 
beseech  God  in  his  behalf  that  the  Anastasis  might  be 
granted  unto  him  ;  and  they  conveyed  the  body  to  the 
chapel  in  the  catacombs,  and  did  pray  mightily  as  afore 
time,  but  God  would  not  raise  him  up.  And  likewise 
some  that  were  ill  besought  the  prayers  of  the  church, 
by  which  aforetime  many  were  healed,  and  God 
answered  not  their  prayers.  And  the  deaf  came  to 
be  relieved,  and  the  blind  to  have  their  sight  restored, 
but  no  miracle  occurred  in  that  chapel  after  the  resur 
rection  of  Marcellus.  And  Epaphras  was  sorely 
grieved  and  his  church.  And  when  they  found  that  God 
no  more  regarded  them  Epaphras  preached  unto  them 
often  that  this  "came  from  the  alliance  made  with 
Constantine ;  and  they  all  saw  that  thaumaturgy, 
which  had  for  three  hundred  years  been  the  glory  and 
defense  of  Christianity,  had  indeed  departed  from  the 
church  and  from  the  world." 

And  often  Epaphras  considered  with  them  whether 
they  should  not,  one  and  all,  leave  Home  and  the 
Roman  Empire  and  even  journey  unto  the  Isle  of  Man, 
and  there  found  for  themselves  and  their  children  a 
community  unsecularized  by  an  alliance  with  any 
human  government.  And  they  did  agree  to  keep  up 
their  services  in  the  chapel  every  Seventh  day,  and  to 
wait  yet  a  little  longer,  if  by  chance  the  Lord  would 
put  into  the  hearts  of  those  men  to  repent  of  their  sin, 
and  come  again  unto  the  Kingdom  of  Heaven.  But, 
notwitstanding,  they  made  all  necessary  preparations 
to  depart  as  soon  as  it  should  become  certain  that  the 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  243 

secularization  of  the  church  would  progress  to  a  hope 
less  condition. 

And  Constantine  left  Rome  and  journeyed  to  Milan 
and  established  his  throne  in  that  city  ;  and  about 
April,  of  the  year  313.  did  the  Emperor  Constantine 
issue  to  the  Roman  people  "  The  Edict  of  Milan," 
which  was  as  follows  : 

*  "Wherefore,  as  I,  Constantine  Augustus,  came  under 
favorable  auspices  to  Milan,  and  took  under  consideration 
all  affairs  that  pertained  to  the  public  benefit  and  welfare, 
these  things  among  the  rest  appeared  to  us  to  be  most 
advantageous  and  profitable  to  all.  We  have  resolved 
among  the  first  things  to  ordain  those  matters  by  which 
the  reverence  and  worship  to  the  Deity  might  be  ex 
hibited.  That  is,  how  we  may  grant  likewise  to  the 
Christians,  and  to  all,  the  free  choice  to  follow  that  mode 
of  worship  which  they  may  wish  :  that  whatsoever 
divinity  and  celestial  power  may  exist  may  be  propitious 
to  us  and  to  all  that  live  under  our  government.  There 
fore  we  have  decreed  the  following  ordinance  as  our  will 
with  a  salutory  and  most  correct  intention,  that  no  free 
dom  at  all  shall  be  refused  to  the  Christians,  to  follow  or 
keep  their  observances  or  worship.  .  .  .  And  this  we 
further  decree  with  respect  to  the  Christians,  that  the 
places  in  which  they  were  formerly  accustomed  to  as 
semble,  concerning  which  also  we  formerly  wrote  to  you 
faithfully  in  a  different  form,  that  if  any  person  have 
purchased  these,  either  from  our  treasury  or  from  any 
other  one,  these  shall  restore  them  to  the  Christians, 

*  Foiu  Eusebius  Eccles.  Hist.  :  B.  X.  I.  c.  5. 


244  DOE  CAS, 

without  money  and  without  demanding  any  price,  with 
out  any  superadded  value  or  augmentation,  without  de 
lay  or  hesitancy,  and  if  any  have  happened  to  receive 
these  places  as  presents  that  they  shall  restore  them  as 
soon  as  possible  to  the  Christians,  so  that  if  either  those 
that  purchased  or  those  that  recieved  them  as  presents 
have  anything  to  request  of  our  munificence,  they  may  go 
to  the  provincial  governor  as  the  judge,  that  provision 
may  also  be  made  for  them  by  our  clemency.  All  of  which 
it  will  be  necessary  to  be  delivered  up  to  the  body  of  Chris- 
tains  by  your  care  without  any  delay.  And  since  the 
Christians  themselves  are  known  to  have  had  not  only  those 
places  where  they  were  accustomed  to  meet,  but  other  places 
also  belonging  not  to  individuals  among  them,  but  to  the 
right  of  the  whole  body  of  Christians,  you  will  also  com 
mand  all  these,  by  virtue  of  the  law  before  mentioned, 
without  any  hesitancy,  to  be  restored  to  these  same  Chris- 
tains,  that  is,  to  their  body  and  to  each  conventicle  respec 
tively.  The  aforesaid  consideration,  to  wit,  being  ob 
served  ;  namely,  that  they  who,  as  we  have  said,  restore 
them  without  valuation  and  price  may  expect  their  in 
demnity  from  our  munificence  and  liberality." 

And  Constantine  likewise  issued  another  decree,  in 
which  he  said  : 

"Whence  it  is  our  will,  that  when  thou  shalt  receive 
this  epistle,  if  any  of  those  things  belonging  to  the  com 
mon  church  of  the  Christians  in  the  several  cities  or 
other  places  are  now  possessed  either  by  the  decurions  or 
any  others,  these  thou  shalt  cause  immediately  to  be 
restored  to  their  churches.  Make  all  haste  to 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  245 

restore  as  soon  as  possible  all  that  belongs  to  the  church, 
whether  gardens,  houses,  or  anything  else. ' ' 

And  Constantine  also  wrote  to  Csecilianus,  Bishop  of 
Carthage  : 

"As  we  have  determined  that,  in  all  the  provinces  of 
Africa,  Numidia,  and  Mauritania  something  should  be 
granted  to  certain  ministers  of  the  legitimate  and  most 
holy  common  religion  to  defray  their  expenses,  I  have 
given  letters  to  Ursus,  the  most  illustrious  Lieuteuant- 
Governor  of  Africa,  and  have  communicated  to  him  that 
he  shall  provide  to  pay  to  your  authority  three  thousand 
folles.  After  you  shall  have  obtained  this  sum,  you  are 
to  order  these  moneys  to  be  distributed  among  the  afore 
said  ministers,  according  to  the  abstract  addressed  to  thee 
from  Hosius.  But  if  thou  shalt  learn,  perhaps,  that  any 
thing  shall  be  wanting  to  complete  this  my  purpose  with 
regard  to  all,  thou  art  authorized,  without  delay,  to  make 
demands  for  whatever  thou  mayest  ascertain  tu  be  necessary 
from  Heraclides,  the  procurator  of  our  possessions,  and  I 
have  also  commanded  him  when  present,  that  if  thy 
authority  should  demand  any  moneys  of  him,  he  should 
see  that  it  should  be  paid  without  delay.  And  as  I  ascer 
tained  that  some  men,  who  are  of  no  settled  mind,  wished 
to  divert  the  people  from  the  most  holy  Catholic  Church 
by  a  certain  pernicious  adulteration,  I  wish  thee  to 
understand  that  I  have  given,  both  to  the  Proconsul 
Anulinus,  and  to  Patricius,  Vicar-general  of  the  Prefect, 
that  among  all  the  rest,  they  should  particularly  pay  the 
necessary  attention  to  this,  nor  should  by  any  means 
tolerate  that  this  should  be  overlooked.  Wherefore,  if  thou 


246  DOE  CAS, 

seest  any  of  these  men  persevering  in  this  madness,  tliou 
shalt,  without  any  hesitancy,  proceed  to  the  aforesaid 
judges,  and  report  it  to  them,  that  they  may  animadvert 
upon  them,  as  I  commanded  them  when  present." 

Wherefore,  Epaphras  plainly  perceived  that  the 
whole  Christian  constitution  of  the  common  church  was 
subverted,  and  a  state  religion  or  ecclesiasticism  sub 
stituted  for  it. 

And  when  the  Presbyter  Epaphras  had  read  this 
Edict  of  Milan,  and  when  he  had  learned  that  the  Em 
peror  Constantino  had  caused  to  be  raised,  in  the  midst 
of  Rome,  a  statue  of  himself,  bearing  a  cross  in  its 
right  hand,  with  an  inscription  which  referred  the 
victory  of  its  arms  and  the  deliverance  of  Rome  to  the 
virtue  of  that  salutary  sign,  the  true  symbol  of  force 
and  courage  ;  and  had  learned  that  "the  same  symbol 
sanctified  the  arms  of  the  soldiers  of  Constantine  ;  that 
the  cross  glittered  on  their  helmets,  was  engraved  on 
their  shields,  was  interwoven  in  their  banners ;  and 
that  the  consecrated  emblems  which  adorned  the  person 
of  the  emperor  himself  were  distinguished  only  by 
richer  materials  and  more  exquisite  workmanship  ;" 
when  he  learned  that  Constantine,  at  the  same  time, 
issued  two  edicts,  "one  of  which  enjoined  the  solemn 
observance  of  Sunday  "  (which  he  therein  denominated 
the  "Day  of  the  Sun,"  in  order  not  to  offend  the 
pagans),  and  the  other  of  which  "directed  the  regular 
consultation  of  the  Artispices  ;"  when  he  saw  that 
Constantine  enriched  the  pagan  temples  ;  placed  the 
figures  and  attributes  of  Jupiter,  Apollo,  Mars,  and 


THE  DAUGHTER    OF  FAUSTINA.  247 

Hercules^upon  the  money  issued  from  his  mint ;  made 
a  solemn  apotheosis  of  his  father,  Constantius  ;  and  in 
all  respects,  attempted  to  hold  fast  to  the  heathen  with 
one  hand,  and  to  the  church  with  the  other,  manifestly 
designing,  and,  to  a  large  extent  accomplishing,  the 
union  of  these  two  systems  ;  and  when  he  saw  the 
church  exalting  the  character,  and  fawning  and  flatter 
ing  the  greatness  and  goodness  of  this  man,  who  still  wore 
the  imperial  purple  and  had  never  even  been  baptized, 
he  informed  his  own  faithful  people  thereof,  who  had 
already  agreed  that,  if  that  thorough  secularization  of 
the  church  which  he  had  foreboded  should  follow  the 
union  of  church  and  state,  they  would  leave  Italy  with 
him,  and  remove  into  some  distant  land  beyond  the 
confines  of  the  Roman  Empire,  and  there  seek  to  main 
tain  a  community  for  themselves  and  their  children,  in 
which  the  forms  and  doctrine  of  the  democracy  of 
Christ  should  be  fully  established  ;  and  in  the  month  of 
June,  in  the  year  313,  having  completed  all  their 
preparations  for  entering  upon  their  long  journey  to 
the  far  Xorth,  they  met  together  to  hold  divine 
service,  for  the  last  time,  in  their  loved  chapel  in 
the  catacombs  ;  and  at  the  conclusion  thereof,  with 
streaming  eyes  and  aching  heart,  the  Presbyter  Epa- 
phras  said  unto  them  :  "  Let  us  arise  and  go  hence  !" 
and  he  took  his  lamp  in  his  hand  and  sadly  moved 
away  ;  and  Marcellus  and  Dorcas  followed  next  after 
him  ;  and  then,  in  slow  and  solemn  procession,  bearing 
their  lamps  in  their  hands  through  the  long  galleries, 
came  the  sorrowful  but  faithful  congregation. 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  249 

And  likewise  other  faithful  presbyters  and  bishops 
and  their  people,  who,  also,  refused  to  betray  their 
Lord  by  adopting  the  Roman  laws  which  sanctioned 
war,  and  slavery,  and  Mammon-worship  in  the  matter 
of  private  ownerships  of  property,  segregated  them 
selves  into  little  communities  in  Italy,  Hispania,  Gaul 
and  Germany,  seeking  to  maintain  for  themselves  and 
their  children  the  democracy  of  Christ's  common 
church ;  and  abbeys  and  monasteries  sprang  up  out  of 
these  communities.  But  in  the  lapse  of  time  the  secu 
larized  church  became  a  human  government,  and  forced 
them  also  to  come  under  their  ecclesiastical  laws  ;  and 
the  church  departed  more  and  more  from  the  funda 
mental  laws  of  primitive  Christianity,  conformed  more 
and  more  unto  the  world,  and  finally  became  that  which 
we  now  see,  an  ornate  and  costly  ecclesiasticism  that 
despises  the  poor,  perverts  the  Gospel,  and  worships 
Mammon  in  the  name  of  the  Son  of  the  carpenter — an 
inverted  Christianity  that  would  feel  itself  to  be  insulted 
if  one  should  call  it  Anti-Christ. 

But  Epaphras,  followed  by  his  whole  congregation — 
men,  women,  and  children,  from  the  gray  grandsire  to 
the  babe  in  arms — passed  through  Rome  by  the  Ap- 
pian  Way,  until  they  reached  the  Temple  of  Vesta,  and 
thence  along  the  banks  of  the  Tiber,  until  they  came  to 
the  yElian  Bridge,  in  solemn  procession,  with  wagons 
and  chariots  drawing  their  household  goods,  and  grain 
for  seed,  and  calves,  and  lambs,  goats,  and  poultry,  and 
all  iron  implements  of  agriculture  and  of  mechanics. 


250  DORCAS, 

And  they  ended  the  first  day's  journey  on  that  spot  of 
ground  which  was  afterward  covered  by  the  great 
temple  of  St.  Peter  (whom  after  ages  confounded  with 
a  Galilean  of  the  same  name,  who  was  a  Christian), 
and  at  night,  under  the  open  heavens,  Epaphras  held 
the  last  Christian  church  service  that  was  ever  wit 
nessed  in  the  City  of  the  Csesars. 

And  day  after  day  they  pursued  their  journey,  and 
night  after  night  their  songs  and  prayers  ascended  unto 
heaven. 

'  And  so  they  went  through  Italy,  and  crossed 
the  Alps,  and  journeyed  into  Gaul,  until,  about  the 
close  of  the  first  month,  they  reached  Lutetia,  and 
here  for  a  short  space  they  tarried,  building  and 
buying  ships  wherewith  to  continue  their  exodus  dpwn 
the  river  and  over  the  sea. 

And  night  after  night  came  the  deacons,  saying  unto 
Epaphras  : 

"  Father,  whither  dost  thou  lead  us  ?" 

And  night  after  night  Epaphras  answered,  saying ; 

u  Beyond  the  limits  of  the  Roman  Empire  unto 
some  land  wherein  we  may  serve  the  Lord." 

And  the  boats  were  completed,  the  people  embarked, 
with  their  implements  of  agriculture,  their  personal 
property,  their  mechanics'  tools,  their  calves,  and 
sheep,  and  goats,  and  their  poultry,  and,  with  the  flow 
ing  river,  they  wandered  to  the  sea. 

And  at  last  the  vast  expanse  of  waters  lay  outspread 
before  them,  and  the  deacons  came  to  Epaphras, 
saying  : 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  251 

"  Father,  whither  dost  them  lead  us  now  ?"  for  the 
ships  were  small  and  the  waters  great. 

And  Epaphras  said  again  : 

"  Beyond  the  limits  of  the  Roman  Empire  unto 
some  land  wherein  we  may  serve  the  Lord.  Cast  off'! 
Hoist  sail!  Trust  God  !" 

And  slowly  the  ships  drove  over  against  the  coast  of 
Britain,  and  they  coasted  westerly  until  they  came 
upon  a  long  peninsula  trending  southwardly,  and  they 
doubled  that  point,  and  the  sea  spread  out  before 
them. 

And  afterwards  they  coasted  northwardly,  until  they 
passed  the  wall  of  Severus,  that  marked  the  extreme 
limits  of  the  Eoman  power,  and  the  people  of  that  land 
refused  to  receive  them  or  to  permit  them  to  land  upon 
their  shores. 

Then  came  the  deacons,  distressfully,  and  said  unto 
Epaphras  :  t 

"Father,  whither  dost  thou  lead  us  now  ?" 

The  presbyter  stood  up  and  prayed,  and  afterward 
he  answered  them,  saying  : 

""Whithersoever  the  Lord  shall  guide  us.  Cast  off! 
Hoist  sail!" 

A  wind  from  the  west  drove  off  the  ships  from  that 
inhospitable  coast.  And  days  and  nights  they  were  on 
the  deep,  when  suddenly  a  land  appeared  before  them. 
There  was  a  long,  low  line  of  fertile  soil,  and  abrupt 
mountains,  and  numerous  sparkling  rivers,  and  a  mighty 
sweep  of  forests  ;  and  the  land  was  beautiful.  Then  cried 
Epaphras  from  the  foremost  ship  :  "  It  is  a  virgin  land, 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA.  253 

where  Rome's  imperial  eagles  never  flew  !  Behold  our 
pleasant  home  ! " 

And  they  made  land  safely ;  and  they  disembarked, 
and  found  no  man,  but  deer,  and  quail,  and  partridges, 
and  grouse,  and  abundant  fish. 

And  first  of  all  they  unloaded  the  ships,  and  by 
the  request  of  Epaphras  they  brake  every  boat  in 
pieces ;  and  their  camp  was  pitched  far  inland ;  and 
they  began  to  build  cottages  and  to  prepare  the  ground 
for  seed. 

Then  went  Epaphras,  and  with  his  own  hand  he  cut 
a  stone  from  the  mountain,  and  he  fashioned  it  with 
tools,  and  drew  it  unto  a  convenient  place  ;  and  he  called 
them  all  to  look  upon  it ;  and  they  said  unto  him  : 
"  What  is  that,  Epaphras  ?  " 

And  he  said:  "I  lay  here  the  corner-stone  of  a 
Christian  church;  who  will  build  thereon  ?  " 

And  straightway  every  able  man  quarried  a  stone 
and  brought  it  thither,  and  the  church  grew  from  day 
to  day. 

And  their  lambs,  and  kids,  and  calves,  and  poultry 
grew  to  flocks  and  herds. 

And  they  set  a  watch  upon  the  loftiest  peak  of  the 
mountain  night  and  day,  and  as  often  as  any  ship  ap 
peared  in  the  ofting  the  man  Epaphras  prayed  unto 
God,  and  a  mist  came  up  out  of  the  sea  and  covered  all 
the  island,  so  that  no  ship  could  find  haven  or  laud 
thereon. 

They  had  a  church,  and  a  school  ;  and  held  all 
things  in  common  except  wives,  even  as  Jesus  com- 


254  DORCAS, 

manded;  and  they  prospered  in  all  things,  serving  God  in 
the  beauty  of  holiness  ;  until  the  man  Epaphras  grew 
old  and  died,  having  enjoined  upon  them  that  they 
should  build  no  ships,  and  should  pray  for  the  mists  to 
rise  whenever  ships  might  come  in  sight,  unless  they 
should  be  wrecked  or  in  distress. 

And  the  people  elected  Marcellus  to  be  presbyter ; 
and  he  followed  in  the  way  of  Epaphras  ;  and  the  peo 
ple  builded  no  ships  ;  and  the  presbyter  raised  the  mists 
to  hide  the  island  when  any  ships  hove  in  sight ;  and 
the  people  were  happy,  prosperous  and  free. 

But  the  presbyter  Marcellus  grew  old  and  died, 
and  Dorcas  with  him  ;  and  others  succeeded  him  in 
the  sacred  office,  until,  about  the  year  400  came  in  new 
generations  of  men  that  forsook  the  tradition  of  their 
fathers,  and  permitted  ships  to  land  upon  the  island, 
and  did  not  pray  that  God  would  send  the  mist  to  hide 
it ;  and  more  and  more  they  held  intercourse  with  ships 
of  Britain  and  of  Rome  ;  and  in  the  year  412  they  had 
their  presbyter  converted  into  a  bishop,  and  sent  him 
unto  the  Ecumenical  Council  at  Aries  ;  and  he  returned 
with  a  new  system  that  prevailed  throughout  the 
Roman  Empire ;  and  they  more  and  more  abandoned 
the  customs  of  their  fathers  ;  and  more  and  more  they 
conformed  unto  the  imperial  laws  concerning  war,  slav 
ery  and  private  property-rights ;  and  thaumaturgy 
failed  from  among  them  ;  and  the  church  was  received 
into  Communion  with  the  ecclesiastical  system  estab 
lished  by  Constantine,  and  secularized  through  and 
through. 


THE  DAUGHTER  OF  FAUSTINA. 


255 


Then  the  Kingdom  of  Heaven  ceased  everywhere  on 
earth,  and  the  last  of  the  primitive  churches  forsook 
Christ,  and  conformed  unto  the  world. 

When  shall  His  kingdom  again  come  in  very  truth 
upon  the  Earth  ? 


UC  SOUTHERN  REGIONAL  LIBRARY  FACILITY 


A     000  083  072     9 


